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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26872723">Feral Red</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkUnderworld/pseuds/DarkUnderworld'>DarkUnderworld</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Zootopia (2016)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst with a Happy Ending, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Major Character Injury, Slow Burn, So much angst, slow burn but probably not as slow as I think</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 19:29:00</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>109,233</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26872723</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkUnderworld/pseuds/DarkUnderworld</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Zootopia is still reeling from the NightHowler incident, fear and anger seething just below the surface of the glittering city. Nick and Judy, partners/best friends, are assigned a case that holds the key to unlocking a dark, sinister criminal organization, but when things go horribly wrong they must deal with the consequences and their feelings for each other.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Finnick &amp; Judy Hopps, Finnick &amp; Nick Wilde, Judy Hopps/Nick Wilde</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>62</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>162</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello all!! I am brand new to this site, though I have read many works on it, I finally opened and account. Woot! So if things look a little weird, I'm still learning how to navigate and upload.</p><p>This is my first Zootopia fic. I first posted it on FF and it is still there, but I am slowly uploading my works to this site as well.</p><p>Thank you all for taking the time to read this fic and I hope you enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="xcontrast">
<p></p><div>
<p></p><div><p>
        <strong>
          <span class="u">Chapter 1</span>
        </strong>
      </p><p><strong>Nick Wilde</strong>, the first fox ever hired by the ZPD -and still the only fox- snarled low in his throat as he ran down the darkened street; his peppy, exuberant, optimistic bunny partner well ahead of him and in pursuit of a suspect through the most dangerous, derelict, and deadly neighbourhood in all Zootopia, and he was trying desperately to catch up.</p><p>Ignoring the pain that was throbbing up his leg, he stamped down on the inexplicable panic that was beginning to rise within him, threatening to crush the breath from his heaving lungs as a feeling of dread and portent settled over him like a heavy shroud.</p><p>He and Judy Hopps, hero of Zootopia and Nick's best friend, had been partners for well over six months now, and finding trouble was not something that was new for them. They had encountered their fair share of danger walking their beat on the streets of Zootopia, but nothing that had compared to the peril of the NightHowler incident; and he wasn't complaining about this fact.</p><p>The whole NightHowler mess had resulted in more than a few strands of grey fur popping up here and there and he didn't want or need any more; he was a red fox, not a silver one.</p><p>Though with having a partner like Judy Hopps, he seriously doubted he would be so lucky.</p><p>Slipping in something that he hoped was slime from an unusually large, possibly mutant slug (although he couldn't quite convince himself of that because it was probably something invariably worse), he cursed his decision to get out of bed this morning.</p><p>What had started out as a bad day had become a terrible one and he had the very distinct feeling -as the day was not technically over yet- that there was the very strong possibility that it was going become exponentially worse.</p><p>The previous evening had given no indication that the following morning would be one he would want to skip entirely.</p><p>After their shift, at least once a week, usually more, they had fallen into the routine of unwinding by having a movie night at the hole in the wall that was Judy's apartment and last night had been no different.</p><p>They went to Judy's apartment because he had refused to let her come to the dump he called home; the dilapidated structure housing more than a few unsavoury characters and its general location was not what could be deemed safe or respectable.</p><p>He knew he needed to move, but the old run-down apartment had been his home for so long and because of all of the changes to his life over the past few months, he felt the overwhelming need to stupidly cling to this small, crappy piece of his past, and the fox he used to be.</p><p>Judy had been tossing around the idea of moving as well. The quarters were quite cramped, especially when he was over, but she had been too busy to even start looking for a new apartment, so they made do.</p><p>As there was no room in Judy's apartment for any other furniture but her bed, they usually curled up upon the uncomfortable surface to watch a movie on Judy's laptop and last night had been no different.</p><p>Judy had let him lazily play with her ears as they lay back and watched the detective noir film, <em>The Maltese Tiger</em>.</p><p>It was a good movie and he enjoyed the characters, but Nick had been exhausted and had felt his eyes slip closed, not waking up until sometime during the credits, the last remnants of whatever pleasant dream he had been having slipping from his mind.</p><p>Reorienting himself and gaining his bearings, he had found himself plastered against Judy's back, his muzzle buried in her throat, basically spooning the poor rabbit who he had apparently decided to use like a stuffed toy, his arms wrapped securely around her small, lithe body.</p><p>Sudden panic filled him as he wondered if he had, during his apparent fitful sleep, crushed the poor doe.</p><p>His partner quickly dispelled this fear when she gave out a small snore and mumbled something in her sleep, her back leg twitching, and the fox felt a large grin spread across his face in anticipation of being able to tease his friend of her propensity to snore. He would, of course, embellish the story to the greatest degree possible and he would enjoy the blush of embarrassment that would suffuse her cheeks when he did so.</p><p>Slipping from the bed, careful not to disturb the sleeping bunny, he stealthily exited the apartment and made his way back to his crummy, depressing home, feeling strangely out of sorts.</p><p>It had been a feeling that had slowly began to settle over him for a few months now, like a fine layer of dust he was unable to wash away, but he had been able to successfully ignore the creeping gloom rather successfully up until now.</p><p>However, as he had made his way slowly down the lamp-lit sidewalk, his hands shoved deeply in his pockets as beautiful, well-kept buildings slowly transformed into more run-down, less reputable establishments, he couldn't seem to shake the grating sensation.</p><p>Pace slowing, he had wondered if his current state of megrim had something to do with his dream. Not that he could really remember it, but he was able to recall that it had begun with him sitting in an office, his name written upon the glass of the door indicating he was a private eye for hire. The room had smelled of old cigarette smoke and cheap rum and he had watched as the door opened revealing a bunny in a tight, slinky red dress, one long ear draped provocatively over one eye to trail back over her shoulder.</p><p>That this stunning female bared a very strong, if not exact resemblance to Judy did not really seem to register in his sleep-induced mind, like it did in his conscious one, but after this, the dream became nothing more than wispy impressions that involved the beautiful doe, but nothing concrete enough to bring a clearer picture to his mind.</p><p>After he had arrived home, he had slid onto his cold, lumpy mattress and fell into a nightmare filled slumber, waking up before his alarm, with his fur standing up on end, his breath coming out in shaking gasps of terror and the image of his partner lying in a pool of her own blood seared into his mind, his paws stained crimson.</p><p>He reasoned with himself, giving his head a shake to dislodge the horrifying dream from his mind, that whatever had happened to Judy, it hadn't been his claws that had caused her harm.</p><p>She was his best friend and even though she was a rabbit –his ancestor's natural prey- and he a predator, he was so much more than the instinct that had been purged from his DNA millennia ago.</p><p>This didn't mean that he wasn't still subject to the occasional nightmare that involved the NightHowler serum that teased his unconscious mind with the question of 'What if?'</p><p>What if they hadn't switched the NightHowler serum for blueberries?</p><p>It was a question he wasn't able to ask in his waking moments, but his unconscious mind was unafraid to answer it in the most graphic and horrifying way possible.</p><p>He had taken a deep, steadying breath, rolled over, and covered his head with his flattened pillow, hoping to grab a few more minutes of sleep before he had to start his shift.</p><p>Whether he had or hadn't he wasn't sure, because what felt like a moment later his alarm had gone off and he had pried his eyes open, feeling groggy and un-rested.</p><p>Sensing that he should just roll over and go back to bed, he had resisted the urge, believing at that moment that the day would get better.</p><p>He had been wrong.</p><p>The tiny instances of misfortune had begun harmlessly enough. First he had discovered that there had been no hot water, which meant that his shower had been a freezing cold stream of water that had forced him into a state of wakefulness he had been unready to experience. After leaving this small bit of horrid water torture, he had been unable to find his tie after he had tossed it off onto the floor the night before.</p><p>Finally giving up on the tie, he had reasoned that he had a backup stashed away in his locker at work and if he left immediately, he would at least have time to soothe his traumatized system by stopping at a Snarlbucks on the way and picking up the darkest, blackest, strongest coffee he could get his paws on and purge the bitter taste with more sugar than was probably healthy.</p><p>Walking from the coffee shop in a better mood than he had entered it, he hadn't even managed to take a sip before a young wolf on a longboard buzzed by him, hitting his arm and causing him to spill the burning hot coffee all down the front of his uniform.</p><p>Giving a shout, both in anger and pain, he glared after the rapidly moving teen that didn't even slow down as he rounded a corner and disappeared from Nick's furious sight.</p><p>With no caffeine in his system and now in serious danger of being late, Nick had made his way to Precinct One, arriving ten minutes late due to a public transportation traffic snarl courtesy of road construction.</p><p>A bad mood of epic proportions had descended so strongly upon him, that even Judy's beaming smile and bright exuberance for the day was unable to pull him out of it.</p><p>Stomping into the locker room, he had quickly changed and arrived in the bullpen just as Chief Bogo was finishing up giving assignments for the day.</p><p>With a sharp word of command, the Chief had ordered Nick to follow him into his office.</p><p>Nick had trudged, ears back, shoulders slumped, into the Chief's office to have his fur raked the wrong way for his tardiness and his spare uniform's sub-par appearance due to the fact that he had balled it up and thrown it into his locker rather than hanging it up after its last use.</p><p>Exiting the office, his foul mood had not been improved by the fact that all of the donuts in the breakroom had already been consumed and the coffee maker, that served a biting, horrible brew that could barely be classified as coffee, was broken.</p><p>At this point, Nick had felt like he needed to hit the reset button on the day. Given this temporal impossibility, he had reasoned that he should have at least read the signs and concluded that today was a good day to call in sick and stay in bed.</p><p>However, due to the stupid amount of self-pride and commitment that had been instilled into him by his perky partner, he was unable and unwilling to let her down, especially by playing hooky for the day.</p><p>After all, who would keep the small rabbit out of trouble if he wasn't there to protect her?</p><p>That, and if he didn't show up, Judy would most likely be put on meter duty, which she would be loath to forgive him for when she found out he hadn't been sick when she showed up at his dingy apartment after work, a bowl of carrot soup in one hand and a bag of medicine, hot water bottle, and a movie in the other, ready and determined to nurse him back to health.</p><p>He knew this because he had done it once and he swore he would never do it again.</p><p>The rage that had lit her eyes as she threw the steaming bowl of soup at his head had caused him to crawl into work on more than a few occasions even when he had actually been ill.</p><p>Though to be honest, Judy in a rage was a spectacle to behold and Nick would admit to occasionally pushing a button or two just to see the flush spread across her face as her violet eyes threw deadly sparks at him.</p><p>It was cute. Not that he would ever tell her that.</p><p>Catching sight of his partner as she conversed with Clawhauser, who was at his usual post, Nick's lips, of their own volition, slid into a lazy smile.</p><p>Her mood was jubilant, which meant that whatever assignment they had been given was not a horrible one, and considering the fact that he hadn't even showed up on time proved how important Chief Bogo thought both he and Judy were to the precinct.</p><p>Just last week they had managed to arrest a gang of bank thieves, catching them red-handed as they attempted to rob the Lemming Brothers' bank.</p><p>Chief Bogo had no choice but to allow himself to be impressed by their arrest record.</p><p>It was true that having underground associations had come in useful on more than one occasion and when Nick found he could be useful to Judy by supplying some needed connection or informant, he could almost feel better about how he had lived his life right up until the point Judy had conned her way into it.</p><p>Though, she would probably use the term 'hustle'.</p><p>It was a word he had freely thrown around more than a few times, but now he found he only wanted to hear it when Judy said it in that sweet, smooth voice of hers as she smiled devilishly at whoever it was who had fallen for her sly tricks.</p><p>She was no dumb bunny and he was proud to say that he was rubbing off on her.</p><p>Judy, as if sensing his presence, had turned and looked at him over her shoulder, wide violet eyes looking at him with a mixture of excitement, concern, and joy. This look caused something inside his chest to give a suffocating little twist.</p><p>Chalking the feeling up to hunger, he felt his ears perk up as he strode over to Clawhauser's desk.</p><p>"You got any donuts or food behind that desk, Ben?" he asked hopefully as Judy vibrated beside him, her nose twitching anxiously.</p><p>"Oh!" Clawhauser said as he looked around behind his desk. "I saved you one," he said handing Nick a doughnut with pink icing and multi-coloured sprinkles.</p><p>Taking a slow bite, he let his partner stew for a few moments before relieving her curiosity and her concern. "Don't worry, Carrots," he said as he slid a smirk her way, "I didn't get put on desk duty or anything. You're still stuck with me." He winked at her as he took another bite of his doughnut.</p><p>Judy had watched him as he devoured his confection and although still sans caffeine, he knew the brown folder Judy had clutched in her paw meant they had a case, which meant that they could pop by a Snarlbucks on the way to wherever they were going and he could grab another, which caused his mood to improve substantially.</p><p>Licking his lips free of any stray icing, Judy had watched him with a transfixed kind of gaze before she shook her head and, meeting his smiling eyes, turned her head away.</p><p>Nick was able to detect a faint blush beneath her silver fur and he felt a satisfied grin pulling at his lips.</p><p>He guessed that her bunny upbringing had instilled her with manners about staring, but he had no problem with returning the favour.</p><p>Although he knew that Judy had grown up with a least one fox, a former bully known as Gideon Gray (a fox he would admit to wanting to meet and not in a friendly kind of way) and that his partner trusted him with her life and was not afraid of him, he sensed that she was still getting used to being such good friends with a predator.</p><p>His teeth and claws, at times, seemed to fascinate her, and he would catch her staring every now and then.</p><p>It didn't bother him, as long as she didn't mind him having a fascination with watching how much her nose twitched depending upon what emotion she was feeling and every now and then, let him play with her ears.</p><p>His silver furred companion was truthfully the best thing that had ever happened to him. They spent much of their time together, both at work and off-duty, and though he and Finnik had always been close, Nick and Judy had formed a special bond.</p><p>Perhaps it was the fact that they had managed to survive several life or death situations together or maybe it was their shared experience of having to go through more than their fair share of prejudice and being looked down upon, maybe it was both, but whatever the case, Judy Hopps, a bunny of all animals, had become a very important and integral part of his life.</p><p>Negligently leaning against Clawhauser's desk, he had crossed his arms over his chest as he watched Judy stare at Clawhauser in fascination as the cheetah seemingly pulled another doughnut from thin air and shoved it into his mouth. Nick smiled, suspecting that there were more than a few hidden in little hidey holes behind the cheetah's workspace.</p><p>Judy had turned her attention back to him. "What happened this morning?" she asked him worriedly. "You're never late."</p><p>Not wanting to explain his terrifying nightmare or his persistent bad luck, he had smiled teasingly. "Well, some bunny kept me awake with her snoring last night, so I had to go home to try to catch a few zees before shift, and I obviously didn't get enough."</p><p>"What!?" Judy squealed in embarrassment as the blush that had been retreating from her cheeks deepened and spread down her neck and up to the very tips of her ears. "I do not snore!" she hissed at him.</p><p>"Oh, I hate to break it to you, Carrots, but you do," he stated with a smug grin. "Loudly."</p><p>"Oh, yeah," Judy shot back, "well you drool in your sleep."</p><p>Feeling sudden embarrassment stain his cheeks, he knew he couldn't let his partner get the upper hand and instead smoothly replied with a toothy smile that he knew flashed his canines, "Only because you smell so delicious."</p><p>Judy's eyes widened in shock and Nick realized that not only had he completely forgotten Clawhauser's presence when he had begun to tease her, but that the words he had just uttered should not have been.</p><p>They had sounded witty in his head, and he had of course meant them in a predator/ prey situation, which even he had to admit was in bad taste, but out loud and in the context they had been placed in, he realized that they could be construed as sexual; a realization that was confirmed when Clawhauser looked back and forth between them, a startled, vaguely horrified, yet curious look on his face as he leaned forward, and in a voice that was barely audible asked, "You…you two aren't <em>together</em>, are you?" The word 'together' had been said as if it was a dirty word.</p><p>Nick felt his eyes go wide and his jaw fall open in shock.</p><p>"Of course not," Judy gasped before Nick was able to get over his astonishment and reply.</p><p>Finally able to speak, Nick snorted and shook his head back and forth. "A fox and a bunny?" he chuckled. "We just hang out and sometimes, Carrots here is tired after a long day slogging it out here at the precinct."</p><p>"Me?!" Judy protested, her little body vibrating with indignation, her cheeks still heated. "You're the lazy one who always naps during our lunch break," Judy snapped back.</p><p>"I'm not lazy," he defended. "I'm nocturnal. It's hard staying awake all day," he said his words not completely untrue.</p><p>Judy glared at him, not even deigning to give him a reply.</p><p>"Fine," Nick said with a roll of his eyes. "I sleep during lunch because I'm being polite," Nick informed her with a placating smile.</p><p>"Polite? How is sleeping while we are on duty being polite?" she asked him with exasperation.</p><p>"Because I'm not rejecting the horrible stuff that you claim is food that you always try to make me eat," he said with an exaggerated shudder.</p><p>Judy paled, her ears fell and Nick cursed himself for hurting her feelings, even if it was the truth.</p><p>She seemed to think that because he never brought lunch that he was starving to death when the reality was that as a predator, he didn't have to eat as much as she did.</p><p>A sugary pastry for breakfast and a hot coffee and he was good until a protein-filled meal in the evening. His ancestors <em>had been</em> nocturnal and though time had broken them of many of their instinctive behaviours and adaptations they had used to survive, remnants of these behaviours still survived.</p><p>It was true that he would occasionally snack and drink enough coffee to keep him awake for most of the day, but unless Judy offered him something with blueberries, the healthier salads and vegetarian wraps she offered him did not appeal to his appetite.</p><p>Violet eyes filled with hurt and anger and Judy shoved a brown folder at him. "I'll catch you up on our assignment in the car," she growled as she stormed off, the anger in her voice not quite able to conceal the waver of hurt.</p><p>Nick sighed. "Yup, I should have stayed in bed," he grumbled under his breath as he opened up the folder and noted a picture of a dry cleaning store attached to a report he didn't have time to read.</p><p>Closing the file he turned to follow his fuming partner. "See ya, Clawhauser," he said with a wave as he began to walk away from the cheetah.</p><p>"Uh, Nick?" Clawhauser asked.</p><p>"Yeah, buddy?" he wondered as he turned but continued to walk backwards.</p><p>"Sorry about, you know…" Nick lifted an eye ridge in question, "saying you and Judy were…" his voice trailed off.</p><p>Nick gave a smirk. "Don't worry about it. Could you imagine?" he asked wryly. "Zootopia would freak out. It's barely recovered from the whole NightHowler thing. There are still little pockets of unrest popping up here and there, where some of the citizens actually<em> agree</em> with ex-mayor Bellwether. And now some of the predators are fighting back and saying that we shouldn't bury our instincts and that prey should fear us." Nick shook his head sadly as Clawhauser's face fell at his words.</p><p>Hating to see the cheetah so upset, Nick pasted a bright smile upon his face and assured the cheetah, "Don't worry, I'm sure things will return to normal soon."</p><p>Clawhauser gave a slight smile and nodded.</p><p>The fox turned away, that persistent feeling of soul-crushing gloom descending upon him as he trudged out to the patrol car where his angry partner would be waiting impatiently for him to get his tail out there.</p><p>Ears drooping, tail dragging on the ground, he had exited the precinct and found their patrol car empty.</p><p>Confused and wondering what was going on, he mentally added pissing off and hurting his partner's feelings to the growing list of misfortunes that seemed to be plaguing him today.</p><p>An old car ,so rusted out Nick was surprised the damn thing still ran, idled up beside him. Looking at the driver in surprise, he saw Judy sitting behind the wheel.</p><p>Opening the door and sliding into the passenger seat, Judy looked at him coldly. "I hope you brought food with you, Officer Wilde, we're going on a stakeout."</p><p>Piling disaster upon misfortune, Nick groaned. Going on a stakeout was bad enough. Going out on a stakeout with a partner who would give him the icy silent treatment the entire time was even worse.</p><p>Playing with his sunglasses, he looked over at Judy, whose icy anger had melted into wounded hurt.</p><p>"Why didn't you just say something?" she asked him softly.</p><p>Nick sighed. "Because you're the best friend I have and I didn't want you looking at me the way you are right now," he replied. "I'm sorry. I should have just told you. But…I'm still a predator, albeit a reformed one with a sweet tooth and a slight addiction to blueberries."</p><p>She glanced over at him and gave him a smile that he would term as watery before she chuckled. "Dumb fox," she said with a shake of her head.</p><p>"Smart bunny," he replied earnestly.</p><p>Silence settled between them as they continued to stare at each other, the confining space suddenly feeling much smaller than it should have as tension seemed to crackle between them.</p><p>Suddenly uncomfortable, Judy gave a cough and Nick looked down at the case file in his paws.</p><p>"Sooo…" he began awkwardly. "Stakeout," he said as he quickly opened the folder and began skimming the meager contents of the file.</p><p>Judy seemed to shake herself and straightened in her seat. "Yeah." She reached into the back seat and zipped open a duffle bag. Pulling out a small dark hoodie, she slipped it on over her uniform and placed a ball cap on top of her head.</p><p>"Because that doesn't look conspicuous at all," he snorted as she threw him his own hoodie and ball cap.</p><p>Closing the file he slipped on the clothing before buckling up.</p><p>"So, the dry cleaning place?" he asked, figuring it would be faster for her just to tell him what their assignment was.</p><p>"We got an anonymous tip saying that Howlett's Dry Cleaner's is a front for a money laundering operation."</p><p>"Well, imagine that," Nick mused. "A one stop shop for laundering your dirty clothes AND your dirty money," he joked.</p><p>Judy gave a little chuckle and Nick smiled, glad that whatever tension that had previously permeated the air between them seemed to have dissipated.</p><p>"So, why don't we just skip the whole stakeout thing and just pop in to see Mr. Big?" Nick had wondered as Judy pulled out of the precinct's parking lot and headed in the direction of Sahara Square.</p><p>"Just because Mr. Big is the biggest mobster out there, doesn't mean he knows what goes on in every other district in Zootopia," Judy said as she gave him a smile, excitement for their first ever stakeout beginning to bubble in her eyes.</p><p>"Carrots, stakeouts aren't like in the movies you know. I've spotted enough cops sitting around in ghost cars to know that it's painfully boring. Besides, do you even know what we are looking for?" he asked as she was about to protest that it wouldn't be boring.</p><p>"Any suspicious activity," she answered readily.</p><p>Nick had sighed in resignation. "The only suspicious activity will be us, sitting in this piece of junk all day."</p><p>With this pronouncement, Nick had discovered that he had only been half right.</p><p>Surprisingly, they had not garnered any attention as Judy had parked them a distance away in line with a row of cars that looked to be in about the same condition as theirs. Handing him a set of binoculars she brimmed with excitement that had not even begun to wane several hours later when nothing more suspicious than a weasel looking very respectable in an expensive suit dropping off his dry cleaning.</p><p>He <em>had</em> been right about the boredom.</p><p>Judy had been oddly quiet, only answering in monosyllables and Nick had been unable to pry from her any satisfactory answers leading him to believe that perhaps she was not quite over their little spat.</p><p>The only other possibility he could think of for her strange mood was that she had been disgusted and disturbed by Clawhauser's questioning regarding of the kind of relationship they had and though tempted to ask her about this, he found he was strangely reluctant to hear how repulsed she was at the idea of them being in a romantic relationship.</p><p>Feeling oddly melancholy, he gave up trying to make small talk and instead settled in for a nap, knowing that Judy would wake him up if she spotted anything out of the ordinary.</p><p>"You weren't lying, were you?" Judy asked him just as he closed his eyes.</p><p>"About you snoring?" he wondered as he tried to lighten the mood slightly.</p><p>"No! Not-…" she let out a huff as he looked at her through his tinted lenses. "About being nocturnal."</p><p>Nick shifted in his seat and took off his sunglasses. "You get used to it," he said with a shrug. "Being awake during the day that is," he added. "I spent a lot of time in the Nocturnal District, not a big fan. Sahara Square is a good place to be at night, but the best cons were to be had during the daylight hours in Savannah Central," he said with a slight smile. "And these," he said as he slipped his sunglasses on, "aren't just because I make them look good."</p><p>Judy chuckled before growing serious. "I'm sorry, Nick," she apologized. "I didn't know."</p><p>He had given her a reassuring smile before he became serious. "Hey, Carrots?" he asked.</p><p>"Hmm?"</p><p>"Soooo….we're good, right?" he asked sliding his aviators down so he could look her in the eyes.</p><p>Judy gave him a wide smile. "Of course we are!"</p><p>Slipping his sunglasses back in place he returned the smile before curling back into his seat to take a nap.</p><p>"Oh, and, Carrots," he paused dramatically, but unable to keep the mischievous grin from spreading across his face, "you really do snore."</p><p>She blushed but gave him a wry smile. "And you really do drool."</p><p>Snorting in appreciation, he had closed his eyes and fallen asleep.</p><p>A finger pressing into his shoulder hours later roused him.</p><p>Looking at Judy's downtrodden, disappointed expression, he stretched and observed, "Told you, waste of time." Judy remained silent and he straightened in his seat, searching around for the cricket sandwich he had bought earlier in the day.</p><p>Judy sighed and looked at his sandwich in disgust. "Five more minutes and the shop will be closed."</p><p>"Here's a thought," Nick said between bites, "Maybe the bad guys do their illegal activities during the evening, you know, when it's dark and easier to get away with things," he told her sarcastically.</p><p>She glared at him. "They've tried staking this place out during the evening. There's never anyone there."</p><p>"Well, maybe the anonymous tip was a prank or wrong. Wouldn't be the first time we've gotten bad info," he said with a shrug, Judy's whole demeanour drooping. "Or maybe the criminals are taking a day off," Nick said in an attempt to cheer his partner up as they watched an underdressed ocelot enter the establishment, his hands overfull with suits too large to be his own.</p><p>"Did you?" Judy wondered as she looked over at him.</p><p>"Nope," he admitted thoughtfully.</p><p>"You really never took a day off?" she asked him with surprise.</p><p>"Hey," he said as he slid a sly smile her way, "don't be feeling sorry for me, Carrots. It isn't like I ever worked for more than a few hours a day and then I got to laze around for the rest of it. Usually I slept"</p><p>"That explains so much," she mumbled under her breath.</p><p>"I did hear that you know," he said as he offered the final bit of his sandwich to her.</p><p>"Ew, no," she said wrinkling her nose in disgust.</p><p>"Don't knock it 'till you try it, sweetheart, you might just like it," he said with a wink and a charming smile, still offering her the sandwich.</p><p>She stared at the sandwich with greater intensity than was warranted until she reached out and surprised him by taking it from his hand.</p><p>"Carrots, you don't… I was just-"</p><p>She took a bite and he held his breath, eyes wide in disbelief as she slowly chewed before swallowing.</p><p>Handing the sandwich back he waited, the bunny oddly quiet.</p><p>She slid a look his way and gave a brilliant smile. "That is the most horrible thing I have ever tasted," she said with a giggle before she reached for her bottle of water and tried to wash the taste down.</p><p>He found himself laughing, suddenly finding the situation much funnier than it actually was and when Judy joined in, he knew he had been completely forgiven.</p><p>"Thanks, Carrots," he said, stupidly touched that she had actually tried it and had, by all accounts, given it a fair chance.</p><p>Wiping a few tears from her vivid violet eyes, Judy had given him a shy smile that made his stomach do a strange kind of flip-flop. "I figured I kinda owed you after trying to feed you all of that-"</p><p>"Rabbit food," he inserted teasingly.</p><p>She blushed and glanced away. "Yeah."</p><p>"It's okay, I forgive you," he said as he popped the remaining bit of the sandwich into his mouth.</p><p>She rolled her eyes and she glanced at the clock. "Well, I guess that's it,' she said as Nick observed that the dry cleaner's had closed ten minutes ago.</p><p>"Guess so," he said with a shrug before frowning in thought, his eyes narrowing in speculation at the darkened shop. "Did you see the ocelot leave?" he wondered.</p><p>Her nose twitching with excitement, she shook her head. "No, I didn't."</p><p>"We could have missed him," Nick demurred.</p><p>"Nick," she hissed in protest.</p><p>Snickering, he opened the door and quietly slid out of the car, closing it gently behind him.</p><p>Judy followed suit. "I'll take the front, you go around back," she told him as Nick nodded in agreement.</p><p>Secretly relieved that Judy had taken the front, he suspected that if the ocelot was going to make a run for it, he would dart out the back.</p><p>Slipping down the alley, he cursed under his breath as he was confronted by a back door which was blocked by a dumpster.</p><p>"Pretty sure that's against fire code," he grumbled before hearing Judy's shout to 'Stop!' coming from the front of the shop.</p><p>Cursing under his breath he ran back down the alley in time to see Judy's foot round a corner.</p><p>Letting out a huff of irritation, he pursued his partner, hoping that it was the ocelot and not the owner, a large wolverine, whom she was running after.</p><p>Not that the ocelot was much better, after all, the small cat had large fangs and claws powerful enough to seriously injure or kill a rabbit, but wolverines, when cornered, were by far the more dangerous and unpredictable animal.</p><p>Nick had managed to gain some ground and was able to see that it was indeed the ocelot, carrying all of the suits he had gone into the shop with, being pursued by his partner.</p><p>Pushing his straining muscles to the limit and promising himself that he would cut back on the doughnuts, he slowly closed the distance between himself and Judy.</p><p>Running down back alleys and across darkened roadways, Nick noticed that most of the light in the lamp posts had been broken, more than a few cars were up on blocks, and shadowy figures huddled around burning barrels for warmth.</p><p>"No, no, no," he whispered under his breath, managing to catch up to Judy. "We gotta call this in, Carrots," he panted.</p><p>"I'm sure we can handle the ocelot," she said as she turned down an alley filled with refuse, animals huddled against brick walls and the strong scent of urine in the air.</p><p>"That's not the problem," he said his eyes darting around as his better night vision revealed things to his eyes that were better left unseen. "We're heading into Happytown."</p><p>"Happytown?" she questioned, apparently not quite grasping the painful irony of this particular district which was pretty much its own entity; a place where the police didn't tread unless it was to do something shady or downright illegal. "It can't be that bad."</p><p>"You're right, it's worse," Nick replied, a note of fear and hatred leaking into his voice that caused his partner to break eye contact with their fleeing suspect and stare at him.</p><p>"You're explaining that when we catch this guy."</p><p>"<em>If</em> we catch this guy," he replied darkly, knowing that there were more hidey-holes and dark, hidden places than you could shake a stick at, and he knew this because Happytown had been his home after his mom had died when he had been ten years old.</p><p>Passed from foster home to foster home, each seemingly worse than the last, he had finally run away and ended up on the streets.</p><p>The residents of many of the districts he had tried living in hadn't taken too kindly to having a homeless fox in their midst and he had been chased from the more respectable areas until he had ended up in the slum.</p><p>It was a time in his life he didn't like to think about, but he had persevered and he had used his smarts and had been resourceful enough to finally perfect his cons well enough to finally get out of the filth of Happytown before its hold on him had become too strong to escape.</p><p>Happytown was a place where the criminal element thrived, those who didn't want to be found hid, and where those who were unwanted or too poor to live anywhere else ended up.</p><p>The residents who lived there only managed to eke out a meagre, miserable existence, unable to escape the hard life, or the criminals and the gangs that had a stranglehold upon its inhabitants.</p><p>Swallowing roughly and banishing the vivid memories of his past, he grabbed his partner by the wrist as he veered off course. "This way, it's a short cut," he explained, gathering from the ocelot's direction that he was headed just past the squalor of the private residences, if you could call the corrugated metal and scraps of wood that made up the construction of the homes as 'residences' and towards the industrial area, where more than a few of the less savory, and most of the illegal business that was transacted, took place.</p><p>Judy didn't protest and instead followed him as he ducked beneath a frayed blanket that was used as a doorway.</p><p>"Nick, we can't-" Judy hissed until she realized that the blanket hid a market, closed for the night, empty stalls and rotting food scattered around, a few vendors sleeping beneath their carts, iridescent nocturnal eyes, both large and small glowing in the dim light.</p><p>Reluctantly, he had let go of Judy's wrist and ushered her forward, thankful of the disguise that Judy had furnished them with earlier. He shuddered at the thought of what would happen to them if they were revealed to be police officers.</p><p>Judy's influence and standing with Mr. Big would not save them from the brutal, violent gangs that roamed these vicious streets, he had no power here.</p><p>Slinking out from the beneath a broken door, Nick had scanned the eerily quiet street, only catching a flash of yellow fur as the ocelot hopped a fence on the other side of the street.</p><p>Darting out from their position, Nick had run ahead of his partner who seemed to be having problems navigating where she was going.</p><p>Nick hadn't realized just how dark it truly was, this area having no streetlights that worked whatsoever.</p><p>Trying to squash the inner voice screaming at him that a money laundering bust was so not worth their lives, he swore as the ocelot caught sight of him.</p><p>The ocelot slowed and Nick pushed his legs to run faster, to get to the ocelot before Judy did, not trusting the cat's sudden appearance of fatigue.</p><p>Lunging forward, the ocelot kicked out a barrel, a tower of wooden pallets that had been leaning precariously against the side of a building suddenly pitching over.</p><p>Leaping out of the way, Nick had been unable to avoid all the pallets, the wood crashing into him, knocking him to the ground, forcing the air from his lungs and crushing him into the broken pavement.</p><p>"Nick!" Judy cried out in worry.</p><p>"I'm okay," he had managed to grind out, knowing that he had been lucky, the pallets falling in such a way that he had been spared the broken boards that had attempted to impale him as they fell.</p><p>"Okay," she said as she darted off, taking his affirmation that he was unhurt as permission to go and continue the pursuit of their suspect.</p><p>Panic had filled him at the thought of his partner and friend going after any animal that called Happytown home and he struggled to move aside the wooden boards and slid out, releasing his leg, which had been trapped.</p><p>This brought him back to the present, where he was nursing a badly bruised ankle and chasing after Judy as if his very life depended on it.</p><p>Catching sight of his bunny running into a dilapidated, squat, one-storey warehouse that had been boarded up long ago, various gang tags decorating the white stucco exterior that had long ago faded to a muddy brown, Nick followed.</p><p>Throwing open the door, the fox's senses were alert. The building's interior was almost pitch black, but he could see that it opened up into what had once been a front office area, the rug long ago deteriorating into molding fibers that were crushed beneath his paws.</p><p>The sound of a door slamming shut caused his head to turn towards an entrance hidden around the corner, light peaking through the cracks in the doorjamb.</p><p>Nick ran towards the door, his partner only a few seconds in front of-</p><p>His world suddenly exploded into a thousand pieces of pinpoint brightness as the door was torn from its hinges and hurtled towards him, a ball of heat followed by the roar of angry flames striking him all at once as he fell into black oblivion.</p>
<hr/><p> </p></div></div></div>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Nick opened his eyes, the scent of singed fur warring with the acrid, thick black smoke that filled his lungs and blinded him.</p>
<p>Finding himself laying on his right side, a crushing weight upon his body, he instinctively tried to move, to get away from the burning heat that roared around him, but his body refused to obey him as the <br/>slight movement sent shooting pain tearing through him.</p>
<p>He wasn't able to take a proper inventory of his injuries; everything hurt. His head throbbed dully and as he continued to lay there, he found his thoughts were becoming hazy and indistinct. He couldn't seem to catch his breath, his sight was blurred with the sting of tears from the smoke and heat and his ears rang with near agonizing intensity.</p>
<p>Able to move the arm he was currently laying upon, he scraped it an inch across the moldy carpet. This caused his body to shift ever so slightly and his left arm to slide forward sending a mass of frenzied pain receptors into overdrive.</p>
<p>He couldn't even scream.</p>
<p>Gasping for air, his lungs attempted to expel the smoke which caused his entire torso to seize in agony. His watering eyes slammed shut as he teetered on the brink of unconsciousness before the wave of black oblivion that rolled over him dissipated.</p>
<p>Taking short, panting breaths, he squinted against the bright wall of hungry flames and tried to remember what had happened.</p>
<p>Ever so slowly, it all came back to him in horrifically graphic detail: the ocelot, the drycleaners, the explosion, and…Judy.</p>
<p>Six months ago he had taken a vow to uphold the law -to serve and protect the citizens of Zootopia- but more than that, he had sworn to protect his partner and best friend with his life, and he had failed.<br/>He had allowed her to pursue a suspect alone and in doing so she had been caught up in an explosion that had sent a shockwave of fiery destruction that had torn through the derelict building.</p>
<p>He knew he wasn't dead -he hurt too much for that- but a blast that powerful, that devastating…</p>
<p>Judy would not have been able to survive being at ground zero when the explosion had gone off and at this point, Nick was surprised that he had; though he had a sneaking suspicion that this particular happenstance was soon to be rectified.</p>
<p>Trapped beneath what felt like a pile of debris and without any backup or partner to save him, he knew he was going to die and he found that this prospect was not as terrifying to him as it should have been.</p>
<p>After all, surviving would mean that he would have to walk into the hallowed halls of the ZPD, look into the faces of his comrades-in-arms, and accept the anger and disgust leveled upon him for his failure to keep Judy Hopps, the hero, the bright light and the beacon that lit the way and inspired them all, alive.</p>
<p>This debilitating burden was only surpassed by the knowledge that surviving meant that he would have to exist and live each and every single day afterwards without her and this was something he found he could not bear to do.</p>
<p>His heart was breaking into a thousand jagged fragments of tortured agony and his soul disintegrating into a fine dust; both organ and spirit forever broken beyond repair.</p>
<p>Nick Wilde, ex-conman, cop, predator, and fox, had spent his entire life protecting his heart from everyone, but somehow, Judy Hopps, cop, prey, and bunny, had stolen his heart.</p>
<p>Deep down, he had known his feelings for Judy had moved beyond the bounds of close friendship and the professional respect that he had for her, but he had chosen to steadfastly ignore this very poignant knowledge because to acknowledge his feelings would be to break his own heart.</p>
<p>They could never be together.</p>
<p>A relationship between them was something that would have been impossible, even if -and this was the biggest if- Judy could have returned his feelings, because romantic predator/prey relationships didn't happen.</p>
<p>Interspecies relationships between animals of the same genus were still looked down upon and though attitudes were changing…</p>
<p>No one would have accepted them: Zootopia and friends and family alike.</p>
<p>And though he would have hated every moment of being in her presence and not able to express his feelings for her, especially when she moved on and left him behind -because she was too brilliant and ambitious not to- and found a mate to love and marry, he would have been able to console himself with the knowledge that he had stayed silent because he wanted for her to be happy.</p>
<p>For once in his life he was willing to be selfless and let her go.</p>
<p>But now…</p>
<p>Nick closed his eyes in despair.</p>
<p>Now she had no future at all and neither did he, because even if he managed to make it out of the warehouse alive, she had taken his heart with her when she had been killed.</p>
<p>And it was his fault.</p>
<p>He should have been faster and he never should have allowed himself to be caught beneath the wooden pallets.</p>
<p>More importantly, he never should have let her chase the ocelot by herself.</p>
<p>Tears that had nothing to do with the smoke that grew thicker around him dampened his fur as he focused upon what it had felt like to hold Judy -his Carrots- in his arms as they curled up together on her rickety bed.</p>
<p>He might have smiled at this remembrance; he wasn't sure, he couldn't really feel his face -or much of anything- anymore.</p>
<p>But he didn't really care.</p>
<p>His mind was contentedly recalling this one moment, this minute, single instant in time that he found to be his most precious memory. It was the one time in his life that he had felt completely content, happy and at peace with himself and the world.</p>
<p>Letting out a final breath, his lungs finally ceased their futile struggle and Nick Wilde waited patiently to die.<br/>________________________________________<br/>Judy Hopps, the first and still only bunny cop of the ZPD, had never wished to be any other animal than what she had been born as. She was proud of everything she was able to accomplish on her own merits and strengths, but right now, she wished she was a mammal -any mammal- that was bigger and stronger than what she was as she desperately tried to move the shattered door and broken beams off of her fallen partner.</p>
<p>"Nick!" she cried out desperately pleading with him to wake up and help her, because she couldn't do this by herself.</p>
<p>Wiping the slime and stagnant water from her eyes, she found tears had begun to fill them, clouding her vision and causing her throat to close up in terror.</p>
<p>Hearing an ominous creak, the already compromised ceiling groaned threateningly as the fire greedily ate through the dry timbers.</p>
<p>Biting back a sob, she tried in vain to move one of the heavy beams from atop Nick's inert form.</p>
<p>Panic seized her frantically beating heart as she heard the distinctive crack of wood beginning to give way.</p>
<p>Refusing to leave Nick, even at the cost of her own life, she darted beneath the broken door, closing her eyes tightly and shielding her partner's head with her body as part of the ceiling that had not been destroyed during the initial explosion, collapsed down upon them.</p>
<p>Taking in gasping breaths as she choked on the thick, black smoke, she slowly opened her eyes.</p>
<p>She knew that more of the ceiling had fallen down and around where Nick lay, pinned beneath a pile of broken wood and debris too heavy for her to move, but she was terrified of what she would now find.</p>
<p>Pulling herself from beneath the door, she shook off the dust that coated her fur and she felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach at the large timber that now lay across the top of the already impossible mound of rubble until she realized that the beam had caused the load to shift just enough that she could see space between the door and Nick's body.</p>
<p>Giving a strangled cry of relief, she slipped her paws beneath Nick's shoulders and with a rush of adrenalin fueling her movements and giving her strength she could not believe she possessed, she pulled him free.</p>
<p>"I'll get you out of here, I promise," she whispered into Nick's ear as she slung his arm over her shoulder and ignored the heat that was so intense, that steam was rolling off her wet fur and clothing.<br/>"You're going to be fine," she soothed as she dragged his limp body towards the thankfully clear exit, her eyes watering so badly she was barely able to see, her lungs burning painfully as she valiantly tried to ignore her growing panic at Nick's continued unconscious state.</p>
<p>She stumbled clear of the building gasping for air and coughing heavily as she fell to the ground, exhausted and unable to move any further.</p>
<p>Forcing herself to sit up, she looked around, desperately seeking help and was shocked to not see a single living soul.</p>
<p>Reaching into her back pocket, she pulled out her cell phone in a desperate attempt to call for help, but it was nothing more than a useless chunk of waterlogged plastic, metal and glass.</p>
<p>Able to hear the very faint sounds of fire trucks in the distance, she knew that they were still a long way out and she turned her full attention back to her partner and gasped in at his condition in horror.</p>
<p>Protruding three inches out from his left shoulder was an inch thick chunk of splintered wood.</p>
<p>Staring at this horrific injury, her instinctive response was to leap forward and immediately pull the offending object from his body. Paw hovering over the wood, she managed to stop herself because it suddenly struck her that removing it could cause more damage than leaving it in.</p>
<p>Dropping her paw, she instead focused back upon her partner's face, blocking his impaled shoulder from her mind.</p>
<p>Gently reaching out, she placed her paw on his uninjured shoulder. "Nick," she said a little too sharply in an attempt to take the quaver of fear from her voice. "T-this isn't funny. W-wake up," she stammered before her voice broke and it was then that her traumatized mind finally caught up with what her eyes had already noted but her brain refused to acknowledge.</p>
<p>The dark hoodie she had given him earlier in the day had been shredded and torn, the uniform beneath not faring much better. There was a great gash in his side, various other lacerations and cuts peppering his body and his exposed and usually brilliant orange fur was now covered in soot and blackened in places where his fur had burned down to the skin.</p>
<p>Though horrific, these injuries were not what caused her paws to cover her mouth in an attempt to stop the strangled cry that squeezed past her lips, her mind screaming at her that Nick had given no signs of life since she had pulled him from the building; his prone body lying much too still upon the ground.</p>
<p>"No," she shook her head as her shaking fingers buried themselves into his neck trying to find a pulse as she frantically searched for help, the empty street eerily silent.</p>
<p>"No, no, no," she whispered her blood turning to ice, her stomach filling with thick bile, and her heart twisting in brutal agony as a wave of black horror washed over her.</p>
<p>She laid her head gently upon his chest, refusing to believe her shaking fingers and their inability to find a pulse.</p>
<p>A moment passed followed by another, her heart beating within her head so loudly, the blood rushing through her ears with near painful intensity that she wasn't sure if she would even be able to hear Nick's heartbeat even if he had one.</p>
<p>Judy felt numb as she lifted her head slowly from her partner's unmoving chest, her mind completely blank. Time seemed to slow and everything became muted and drained of colour and life.</p>
<p>Suddenly slammed back into her body, every sense became heightened; the fire that raged behind her was so hot, so loud, so crisp and clear, that she felt as if electricity lit her blood and jumpstarted her mind.</p>
<p>Grabbing hold of Nick's head, she tipped it back and placed her paws upon his chest.</p>
<p>She could barely see through the tears that clouded her vision, but she remembered her training; remembered how to resuscitate a mammal, but never imagining that she would have to use the technique to revive her partner and best friend.</p>
<p>It was too much.</p>
<p>It was too great a task, even for her, because if she failed…</p>
<p>Her mind couldn't even accept this, shying away and forcing her to regain her focus by viciously shoving all of her self-doubt away. Determination roared through her, giving her the strength she needed to push down upon Nick's chest with enough force to hopefully restart his heart.</p>
<p>Counting in her head, she finally pulled her paws away, grasped his snout and making sure her paws encircled his muzzle, blew through his nostrils. His chest expanded and fell as she pulled away and she again began chest compressions, counting in her head, clinging to the procedure that had been drilled into her head, believing beyond all hope that she could, with the very strength of her considerable will, bring him back to her.</p>
<p>Again she breathed into his nostrils and again his chest fell and did not rise, but she refused to give up; she refused to let go and she told him so, with broken sobs, whispered threats and dire promises.</p>
<p>"Nick," she begged as she pumped his chest, right over his heart. Her muscles shook with fatigue, but she refused to stop, because right now, she was Nick's heart. "You don't get to die on me," she bit out, her voice shaking pitifully. "You hear me, Nicholas Piberius Wilde?! Y-you," her voice broke. "You don't get t-to leave me," she told him in a wretched whisper that was barely audible, even to her own sensitive ears.</p>
<p>She moved her paws back to his face, blowing air into his lungs and hoping that her breath would become his breath and that he would open his eyes and tease her about being an emotional bunny and she would laugh and he would gather her up in his arms and she would wish that she could stay within that warm embrace forever.</p>
<p>Straightening, she let go of Nick's muzzle and placed her paws upon his chest, but this time, they rose of their own accord. It wasn't much, just a tiny movement so small she could have imagined it, but she hadn't; a short hitch of breath from between Nick's lips causing her own breath to catch in her throat.</p>
<p>"Nick!" she wailed as he gave another wheezing intake of air. Quickly she placed her head right over his heart, the sluggish, dull thump within his chest sounding in her ear. She wasn't a doctor, but she didn't think his heart was supposed sound like that. Her eyes shot to Nick's face as she lifted her head from his chest. His eyes fluttered open and she felt hope rise within her only to be crushed a moment later when without any apparent recognition or acknowledgement of her presence, his eyes slid closed again.</p>
<p>"Nick?" she whispered, her battered heart feeling as if it couldn't take anymore and would, at any moment, cease beating altogether if he didn't give her some kind of sign that he was okay.</p>
<p>But Nick remained heart-wrenchingly silent but for his laboured, gasping breaths.</p>
<p>The fire trucks were closer now, something her had ears told her but which her mind was too occupied with heartbreak, worry, and recrimination to pay much attention to. Gathering Nick up in her arms, she hugged him close, stroking his cheek gently. "Help's coming," she told him in a soft voice that shook brokenly as she spoke. Her tears, which had abated momentarily when Nick had opened his eyes, again freely flowed as a phantom paw seemingly crushed her heart in a brutal and unrelenting grip while she drowned in a sea of black suffocating guilt.</p>
<p>Nick had been hurt- No. Nick had died because she had run off and left her partner, the one whose back she was supposed to have at all times. In her self-righteous zeal to continually prove her self-worth, she had pursued the suspect alone and with no other thought than catching the ocelot. She had left her best friend behind.</p>
<p>And Nick was the one who suffered the consequences of her selfishness.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," she choked out as her tears continued to fall, dampening Nick's soot covered cheek. "I'm so, so sorry." If she had only waited, helped Nick extricate himself from the fallen pallets, they could have engaged the suspect together and the ocelot may not have had a chance to escape after she had tackled him -dry-cleaning and all- to the ground. They had tussled for a moment, the ocelot gaining the upper hand by landing a blow to the side of her jaw that stunned her for long enough for him to slip from her grasp, grab the dry-cleaning, and dart away.</p>
<p>"Bye, bye, bunny," the ocelot had said as he pulled a small remote from his pocket. He had brandished the device with enough of a theatrical air before he had gleefully pressed the button that she knew whatever was about to happen was going to be bad.</p>
<p>She had heard it, her keen ears picking up sudden multiple beeps coming from all around her. Eyes swinging towards the closest sound, she spotted what looked to be a bomb taped to the side of a support beam. Her quick thinking mind had processed this, along with the realization that there were more than just one, the ocelot running for the back door, which meant the bombs were delayed, by how long she wasn't sure, but taking into account the ocelot's hasty movements, she suspected not long.</p>
<p>Closer to the entrance than the exit, Judy had turned and run as fast as her fatigued legs could carry her towards the front of the building. The length of time between each beep of the bombs was shortening and she had realized that she wasn't going to make it.</p>
<p>Not willing to give up and allow herself to be blown up, her eyes had fallen upon an old trough-like sink hidden behind some old boxes with a dripping tap and a clogged drain. The sink was overfull, water dripping down the sides, the inner surface caked with mold and algae; the stagnant stench repulsive, but salvation had never smelled so good.</p>
<p>Leaping into the sink she had thought of Nick but only in the thankful and mistaken belief that he hadn't been in the building. The explosion had torn through the warehouse just as her body hit the frigid water, the shockwave dampened by the water and the porcelain, which protected her before shattering.</p>
<p>Pulling herself from the wreckage, she was able to see through the heavy flames the spot where she had been only a moment before, most of the ceiling, with its thick beams and metal roof, caved inward. Had she still been there, she would have been crushed if the bombs hadn't ripped her body to shreds first.</p>
<p>The heat and smoke had been unbearable, her fur only protected by the thick layer of water and muck as she ran; only thinking of escaping the building before it collapsed completely. Darting through the open doorway, she had stopped dead in her tracks when she had caught sight of Nick, buried beneath fallen debris, unmoving.</p>
<p>She may have abandoned her partner, but he had not treated her in kind. He had her back and because of this he had been caught up in the explosion that, had he been at her side, he would have walked away from unharmed.</p>
<p>Instead, he was now lying in her arms, most likely dying.</p>
<p>"Miss?"</p>
<p>Judy, in a daze, lifted her head from where she had rested her cheek upon the top of Nick's head and looked up into the face of an elephant, his helmet marking him as the Chief of the ZFD, the Zootopia Fire Department.</p>
<p>"Are there any other mammals inside?" he asked and Judy stared at him blankly for a moment, unable to understand his words. She might have answered, she wasn't sure. She felt as if she was seeing things through a very long and dark tunnel.</p>
<p>The Chief shouted orders and talked into the radio strapped to his shoulder which seemed to center her, throwing everything back into loud and brilliant focus as she noticed the lights from the fire trucks, the blare of the sirens and the movement of the firefighters.</p>
<p>"We have-" the Chief paused as if catching sight of something, a new urgency filling his voice. "We have an officer down, I repeat, an officer down!" He shouted. "The ambulance is a minute out, Miss- Officer Hopps," he corrected.</p>
<p>Dressed as she was in dark clothing, soaking wet, and covered in grime, it was apparent that it had taken a moment for the Chief to realize that the bunny with the fox, his ZPD uniform burned and torn, but his badge on display, had to be Judy Hopps.</p>
<p>She and Nick, in the months that had passed since ex-Mayor Bellwether had been arrested, had become the face of the ZPD both as partners who were predator and prey, as well as the pinnacle of success for the mammal inclusion initiative implemented by former Mayor Lionheart.</p>
<p>They were heroes to Zootopia and comrades in arms with the other emergency departments that served and protected the city. Frequently crossing paths with the fire department, and paramedics, the ZPD officers had great respect for the essential first responder services they provided and the respect was mutual.</p>
<p>Paws were suddenly attempting to take Nick from her grasp and her automatic response was to not let him go.</p>
<p>"It's okay," a paramedic soothed, the snow leopard slowly easing Nick from her loosening hold and laying him flat upon the ground. Quickly assessing Nick's condition, the leopard's features appeared grim as she listened to his heart through her stethoscope.</p>
<p>"Ray!" the leopard called out to a black jaguar that was running towards them with a backboard. Placing the backboard on the ground, the jaguar scooted forward and knelt on the ground in front of Judy.<br/>First responders now swarmed the scene, firefighters were fighting the blaze that had spread to the buildings on either side of the one she and Nick had escaped from and police officers, her fellow members of Precinct one, were cordoning off the area; lit up with the bright flashing lights of emergency vehicles, and the echoing wail of sirens.</p>
<p>"Don't you worry," the jaguar said as he placed a heavy blanket around her shoulders which seemed to be shaking uncontrollably. "We'll take good care of your partner," he soothed as he quickly shone a light into her eyes. "Signs of mild shock," the jaguar said over his shoulder to his partner. "The lacerations to her cheek will need stitches as well," he said, radioing in to dispatch that they 'required another ambo' before placing a white compress upon her cheek.</p>
<p>Ray moved to Nick's side, the leopard finished with her examination. "Let Mt. Royal know that we have a police officer involved in an explosion coming in with burns, contusions, lacerations, probable pneumothorax, smoke inhalation, and impalement through the left shoulder causing possible arterial damage," the leopard ordered as she quickly placed an oxygen mask over Nick's muzzle before rustling through her bag as Ray began wrapping the hunk of wood that had been driven through Nick's shoulder with padding and bandages to stabilize it during transport.</p>
<p>At the leopard's words Judy felt herself become faint, the blood draining from her face.</p>
<p>Putting a neck brace around Nick's throat, the large cats shifted Nick upon the backboard and strapped him in.</p>
<p>Standing upon shaking legs, she questioned in a small voice, "I-is he going to be okay?"</p>
<p>"We will do everything we can for him," the female leopard answered with a non-answer as they lifted Nick up and placed him on a stretcher, wheeling him to the back of the ambulance.<br/>Swallowing roughly, she followed.</p>
<p>"The other ambulance is just pulling up," Ray told her as they placed the stretcher into the ambulance, the leopard hopping up into the back. "They will take you to Grey's hospital and-"</p>
<p>"No," Judy said with a shake of her head, panic filling her at the thought of not being at Nick's side and being taken to a completely different hospital. "I'm staying with Nick," she told them.</p>
<p>"Emerge at Mt. Royal is too busy to-" Ray began.</p>
<p>"I don't care," Judy shot back, not backing down, "I'm going with Nick," she snapped fiercely.</p>
<p>After a quick nod from the leopard, Ray helped Judy into the back of the ambulance where she sat opposite the female paramedic.</p>
<p>"Hopps!" Chief Bogo's voice called to her, stopping Ray from closing up the rear doors. The Cape buffalo appeared at the rear of the ambulance and took a quick assessment of the situation. "Go," he said gruffly, closing one door while Ray closed the other before the jaguar ran to the driver's side and hopped into the cab.</p>
<p>In the back of her mind she knew that the Chief was going to want a full accounting of everything that happened, but right now, all she could think of was Nick. Reaching out, she clasped Nick's hand in her own while the paramedic opposite her did what she could to stabilize him as the ambulance sped towards Mt. Royal hospital.<br/>________________________________________<br/>Again, I am so cruel...<br/>But I hope you enjoyed this chapter and if you did, feel free to let me know:)</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey all, next chapter is up! Still trying to figure out this site for uploading the chapters, ah well, the joys of a learning curve. LOL<br/>I hope everyone enjoys! <br/>And a giant thank you to everyone who left kudos and commented XD</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Ronnie Blacktail</strong> slunk into the darkened office, lit only by a small desk lamp, and clutched the garment bags tightly against his chest. Swallowing roughly, he pasted a smile on his face and worked on his swagger, knowing that he had screwed up, but hoping that he had done enough to ensure he would be forgiven. "I got the suits, Boss," he offered with only a slight tremble in his voice, which he could live with. There was a fine line between cocky and confident and he didn't want to fall onto the wrong side of the two. "</p>
<p>You blew up our transfer station," came the growled reply as Ronnie stared at the back of an expensive, black vinyl swivel chair.</p>
<p>Ronnie felt his ears flatten against his head. "Stupid cops were chasing me."</p>
<p>"And so your first instinct was to lead them straight to a very key junction point in our operation and use the self-destruct remote? A measure that was put in place to be used only under the most dire of circumstances, mainly discovery," the voice wondered smoothly as the chair slowly swung around revealing the large cat, his silhouette draped in darkness.</p>
<p>"N-no," Ronnie stammered in fear. "No cop goes into Happytown!" he defended. "I-I didn't think they would follow me into Happytown."</p>
<p>"But that is your problem, isn't it, Roger, you don't think," his boss said as he steepled his fingers in front of him on his desk, his claws clicking together in irritation.</p>
<p>"It…it's Ronnie sir, and the warehouse was empty. The shipment had already been moved," he soothed. "And I'll scout a new location, don't worry, we'll be back and up and running by tomorrow," he promised.</p>
<p>"This assurance would carry more weight with me if it weren't for the fact that, thanks to you, there will now be a very palpable, and visible police presence in Happytown for the next little while, which will require us to cease all operations until the crime scene is thoroughly inspected so that we do not draw attention to ourselves." The big cat's eyes glowed in anger. "If this were not bad enough, because of your hasty, reckless actions, we lost the use of Howlett's dry cleaners as well. All because you were late," he snarled. "We knew that the police were running surveillance on the dry cleaners, but that was of little concern as there was nothing illegal going on. Your job was to pick up the suits on time. When then the police approached, all you had to do was explain that the service you received was inferior and that is why you were in the establishment after hours. You were doing nothing illegal, you were carrying nothing illegal. You were carrying suits. Instead, you decided to run, garnering the attention and the suspicion of the police. Shall I continue to list your multitude of mistakes?" he asked.</p>
<p>Ronnie felt his throat tighten in fear as he shook his head back and forth. "I got the cop," he said this as if this would absolve him of his grave errors.</p>
<p>"Two cops were involved in the explosion," his boss corrected.</p>
<p>"I got the fox too? Sweet! Thought I only managed to take out the bunny," he said in relief, rather proud of himself.</p>
<p>The glowing eyes became deadly slits of rage. "One officer was seriously injured; the other has apparently walked away with only minor injuries. They are not releasing the name of which officer was the injured party, but for your sake, you had better hope that whoever it was does not remember anything about the contents of the warehouse and begin to put the pieces together," he threatened smoothly as he leaned back in the chair, the vinyl creaking under his weight.</p>
<p>"Y-yes, Boss," Ronnie stammered as he moved forward and placed the suits upon the heavily carved wooden desk.</p>
<p>"Ronald?"</p>
<p>"Ronnie," he corrected automatically, trying hard not to stare at the large canines that glinted in the dim light of the large cat sitting opposite him. His boss waved off his correction.</p>
<p>"You are missing a tag," he said pointing to the metal hanger. There were three garment bags; each should have had a small round disk attached to the hanger as a tag. Two were blue tags with a numeral, the other, the one that was missing, was black with a gold numeral.</p>
<p>"I-it must have fallen-" he began but his boss suddenly stood, towering over the much smaller ocelot. Ronnie cowered in fear.</p>
<p>"I would like to think of myself as a good employer," his boss began with a soft sigh of exasperation. "I pay my employees very handsomely and even provide health and dental benefits. To this end I expect a certain amount of loyalty as well as the obeying of certain rules that my employees must abide by," he said as he opened a drawer. Ronnie's instincts were screaming at him to run, but he felt as if he was frozen to the spot, unable to move so much as a toe let alone make a mad dash through the ornate double doors he had entered through. "But there are two rules which, if broken, I cannot allow to go unpunished," he growled dangerously. "The first: do not bring attention to my operation in any way, shape, or form." Ronnie let out a whimper of fear. "The second, and this one I find to be completely unforgivable: do not steal from me," he snarled menacingly.</p>
<p>Paws up in surrender, Ronnie took a step back. "Boss, I swear, I never took nothin'."</p>
<p>"Rodney, I did not get where I am by being stupid," he purred. "I find it hard to believe, that you, an ocelot that has prided himself upon the many years he has lived on the wrong side of the law, would run from a police officer when there would be nothing they could arrest you for. This makes me believe that you were actually carrying something which, if found, would cause you no shortage of difficulties, both with the police and with myself," the big cat mused thoughtfully.</p>
<p>Ronnie turned and bolted for the door, hoping he would be able to slip past the two wolves that stood sentinel on the other side. A wet, sticky substance hit him in the side of the head and he went down. The ocelot touched his fur, his paw stained blue. "No! Please, no!" he pleaded in a strangled whisper.</p>
<p>"You see," his boss began as he walked from around the desk, his body still completely obscured by shadow, dart gun in paw, "the Night Howler serum that those sheep came up with is a rather limited and crude toxin. I suppose it served its intended purpose in an effective though brutish kind of way. But, it admittedly does have its uses," the large cat mused with a malicious grin, before turning serious. "Such as punishing any subordinate who has the audacity to steal my drug in an attempt to find a way to mass produce it and sell it on the street. It is not a common street drug!" he snarled in anger.</p>
<p>"The antidote, please! I swear, I was never gonna-"</p>
<p>"Do you still have it or did you sell it?" the large cat snarled. Shaking his head wildly back and forth Ronnie's body began to burn with agony.</p>
<p>"Pocket," he panted, his words barely articulate.</p>
<p>"Good," the big cat said, pulling out a small vial filled with a bright red liquid from the ocelot's trouser pocket. "I thought the actions of those stupid sheep would ruin everything, but as luck would have it, the discord that was created between predator and prey only increased my business. But it is a delicate balance, push too far one way or the other and the cards will come crumbling down, and that would cost me money; and I do so hate losing money." The big cat stood and the ocelot looked at the huge predator in fear. "Almost as much as I hate betrayal."</p>
<p>The ocelot lost the rest of himself as he fell upon all fours before leaping at the larger cat, his thoughts filled with nothing but the savage urge to attack, rend, and kill.</p>
<p>The large cat watched as the doors burst open and two highly trained black wolves darted in, quickly tranquilizing the vicious ocelot. One wolf held the unconscious ocelot up by the scruff of his neck. "Throw him in the Pit," the large cat said with a negligent wave of his paw. "Let the players know we have a new game on the board."</p>
<p>The wolves left without a word and he walked back over to his desk, sitting back down in his chair. Lifting the small vial up so that it caught the light he peered grimly at the red liquid, furious that -for now- he would be unable to accommodate his more illustrious and wealthy customers, and having no choice but to content himself with the rabble. He could only be thankful that his drug had not made its way onto the streets or worse, into the hands of the police. If the ZPD had any idea of what was really going on…well, it would spoil everything. Smiling grimly, his mind worked on ways to clean up the ocelot's mess and repair the supply line that had been broken.</p>
<hr/>
<p><strong>Judy</strong> stared blankly at her paws into which someone had placed a fresh, steaming cup of coffee in a possible attempt to warm her shaking body and comfort her. Unfortunately, the icy numbness which seemed to have gripped her body had nothing to do with the temperature of the room or her borrowed clothing.</p>
<p>The ride to the hospital had seemed to take infinitely longer than it probably had. Nick's vitals had not been strong; his blood pressure too low due to blood loss, his breathing almost non-existent. The leopard, Dana, had done all she could and thankfully the emergency room staff had been prepared when they had arrived, swiftly whisking Nick off to be assessed and prepped for surgery. The nurses had gently, firmly, and insistently pulled Judy away from Nick's side as she clung desperately to his paw. She had then been taken back to the waiting room to be admitted and given a room to be examined by a doctor.</p>
<p>As she had sat and waited on her cot, she had noticed that her paws were stained crimson with dried blood.</p>
<p>Nick's blood.</p>
<p>Swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat, she felt a wave of terror and panic wash over her threatening to drown her completely. Her vision darkened around the edges and her heart beat so frantically in her chest that she was positive it was about to burst free. A hoof upon her shoulder had recalled her to her surroundings as a kind-faced ewe in green scrubs that identified herself as a nurse, began asking her questions and carefully examining Judy's injuries. Judy only cared about Nick and she immediately asked about him. The ewe told her that Nick was still in surgery, but was unable to give her any specific information about his condition.</p>
<p>An interminable amount of time later, the doctor, a harried porcupine in a white lab coat, had come in to assess her injuries. Judy had been diagnosed with nothing worse than needing stitches to close up four lacerations that transected her cheek, given to her by the ocelot as they had struggled on the floor. The doctor had gruffly stated that Judy was fortunate to have escaped any serious injury and was incredibly lucky to be alive.</p>
<p>But she didn't feel very lucky.</p>
<p>True, she was relatively unharmed, a few scrapes and bruises and a throbbing cheek numbed by the local anesthetic for the stitches, but she would have given anything at that moment to trade places with Nick.</p>
<p>Asking the doctor if he knew anything about Nick's condition, the doctor had only harrumphed and informed her that her partner was not his patient.</p>
<p>She was then ushered into a bathroom that contained a shower and was given a sweatshirt and sweatpants to change into. Her clothing hadn't been ruined, her uniform still serviceable, but everything was dripping wet and covered in filth, and needed to be laundered. Not that she was thinking about this at that particular moment. She had stared at the clothes for more time than was necessary before a soft knock at the door had recalled her to her surroundings. In a rush to get out of the bathroom and get an update on Nick, she had not dawdled in the warmth of the water that flowed down her fur; she could barely feel it anyway.</p>
<p>A large chunk of ice seemed to have formed around the vicinity of her heart and it felt as if the frigid cold was spreading, slipping through her veins and inching ever steadily outwards. Cleaning her fur free of the grime and soot that had caked her body, she had quickly exited the shower and dried her fur. Pulling on the overly large clothing, she had then picked her sopping uniform up from the ground when a black token of some sort had fallen out, landing upon the floor. Scooping it up, she shoved it in her pocket before taking her uniform and placing it in the plastic bag that had been given to her for this purpose.</p>
<p>A different nurse escorted her to the nurses' station where she signed for her release and was given instructions to go home and get some rest. She was also informed that as her mother was her emergency contact, that she had been called and informed of Judy's condition. With a sinking heart, she made her way to the waiting room where she found Clawhauser waiting.</p>
<p>The cheetah had leapt up from where he had been sitting on a chair. Emptying a bag of mini munchem's candy into his mouth, he ran to her. He was effusive in his relief when she explained that she was okay and he was sure that Nick would be just fine as well. Unfortunately, Clawhauser's words of soothing, optimistic comfort fell upon deaf ears as Judy sat down upon an uncomfortable chair in the waiting room, prepared to wait for news of Nick's condition for as long as it took. Using Clawhauser's phone, she quickly called her parents, convincing them that they didn't have to come all the way to Zootopia and was only able to tell them that she would need to call them back when they asked about Nick.</p>
<p>Settling back in the chair, her body grew colder as the clock upon the wall ticked slowly forward. Hours passed and by this point, the numbing cold that had slowly been seeping throughout her body had completely consumed her. A coat had been placed around her quivering shoulders and a steaming cup of coffee placed into her hand. She didn't drink coffee, she found the taste repulsive, but the smell reminded her of Nick and the warmth chased the ice from her paws until it grew cold and someone replaced it with a fresh one.</p>
<p>Floating along the periphery of her mind, she noted that ZPD officers had begun slowly filtering into the waiting room as the fallout from the explosion in Happytown was brought under control. Some came in only long enough to look in on her and ask for updates on Nick's condition, others stayed for as long as they were able and she knew that she appreciated that they had all come, but she couldn't seem to make herself acknowledge their presence, too wrapped up in the horror of the night and the culpability of her actions.</p>
<p>Each time an officer expressed their distress and concern at what had happened to her and Nick, she felt as if a knife was plunged into her heart and twisted just that little bit more.</p>
<p>Judy felt on edge; hanging onto a thin thread of sanity.</p>
<p>Every time a door opened, her head snapped up, only to be disappointed when it was an orderly or a nurse, running an errand or moving a patient that wasn't Nick. As time passed with no word on Nick's condition, the anticipation of hearing news changed into dread. She knew, deep down, that they should have heard something by now, which meant that either Nick had been way worse than the paramedics had believed him to be, or there had been complications.</p>
<p>"Bunny Cop!" a deep voice called out and Judy looked up, her wandering mind, mired in the night's events, forced back to the present and into focus, meeting the angry, gaze of Finnick.</p>
<p>Staring into the eyes of Nick's oldest friend, she felt the haze of numbness that had cloaked her suddenly ripped away and all of the sensations that had been repressed in a comforting fog of nothingness were quickly exposed to an overwhelming wave of emotion; and she couldn't take it.</p>
<p>Judy felt herself shatter and break.</p>
<p>Slipping from the chair she had been sitting on for the past four hours, she fell to the floor in front of the fennec fox. Her eyes awash with tears, she reached out and pulled the small fox close and sobbed brokenly into his black shirt. "I-I…I'm s-sorry," she stammered as the gruff fox pushed her away as if he hated to be touched or perhaps hated her because she was the one who had convinced Nick to become a police officer in the first place and now…</p>
<p>Looking up into Finnick's face, the small fox let out a huff of air, rolled his eyes and put his arms around her in a limp hug that she took for what it was: comfort.</p>
<p>Clinging to the smaller mammal, she asked how he had known as she apologized profusely, telling him that she would have called him if he actually owned a phone of any kind. Only, even if he had owned a phone, it wouldn't have done her any good as her phone had gone for a swim with her, and Nick's phone -a phone she had to practically force her partner to buy- she honestly didn't know if it had survived the explosion.</p>
<p>Finnick pulled away and answered that he had seen on the news that two officers had been injured in an explosion, but there had been no information about who the officers had been. Eventually the report had been updated and Nick and Judy's names had been released as well as the information that one officer had been taken to the hospital with minor injuries, while the other one had suffered life-threatening ones. He had made his way to the hospital as fast as he was able, not sure what he was going to find.</p>
<p>Wiping the tears from her eyes, Judy was able to see that beneath the outward projection of anger, the diminutive fox was worried and scared.</p>
<p>"How…how bad is he?" Finnick finally asked in his deep, rumbling voice.</p>
<p>At this question, Judy couldn't have answered, even if she had known how to answer. Her throat closed up completely and tears again filled her eyes. All she was able to do was shake her head back and forth in misery. Finnick appeared to shrink into himself, becoming smaller and Judy didn't think he would appreciate her trying to comfort him in any way and so continued to sit on the floor in front of him as she watched him pull himself together, turning his head away as he gave a choked sob of emotion that he tried to change into a cough before he growled, "Nick's tough. He's got more lives than a cat. He'll be fine."</p>
<p>A warthog wearing maroon scrubs and holding a chart suddenly walked through the double doors that Judy had been anxiously staring at for the past few hours.</p>
<p>"Officer Judy Hopps," he called out as his dark eyes scanned the waiting room. Judy leapt to her feet, every sense finely attuned and focused upon the doctor. "Please come with me," he said as he turned and strode back through the door he had entered through.</p>
<p>Judy took a look at the remaining officers in the room, Clawhauser, Whitepaw, Hyde, and Howl who all sat up straighter, their tired expressions turning to concerned hope.</p>
<p>Finnick gave her hand a quick squeeze and a nod of encouragement.</p>
<p>Following the doctor, who had not waited and who was briskly walking down the hall, Judy managed to catch up just as the warthog stopped outside the door of a private room which housed medical equipment but no bed. "Officer Hopps?" he asked as Judy nodded and shook the doctor's hoof as he introduced himself as Dr. Tuskson.</p>
<p>"Officer Wilde is out of surgery and in recovery," he informed her, which caused her to breathe a small sigh of relief that Nick was still alive; a fear that had been plaguing her since he had been pulled from her grasp and swept away by the trauma team. Motioning to two chairs that sat just outside the door, Judy hesitantly took a seat as Dr. Tuskson did the same and sat down next to her. "According to the records we obtained from the ZPD, you are Officer Wilde's emergency contact."</p>
<p>Judy found her heart do a strange kind of skip-jump at these words. She was shocked that Finnick had not been Nick's contact, though in an emergency, Finnick would be nearly impossible to get in touch with, so it made sense, but she was still slightly touched by this revelation.</p>
<p>"Does he have any family that we could get in touch with?" the doctor asked which caused Judy's heart to quail in her chest with sudden fear.</p>
<p>"No, none," she whispered. Nick didn't talk about his past much, but she knew that his mother had died when he had been young and he didn't know his father at all and he had no siblings and no other family. She had known this, but she had acknowledged it in a diaphanous kind of way. She had thought it was sad and her heart had ached for him -the younger, vulnerable version of Nick- but he hadn't seemed overly bothered by this and had claimed it was even freeing in a way, but the reality of having no one hadn't hit her until that exact moment.</p>
<p>He was on good terms with the officers at the ZPD and many were even now waiting anxiously in the emergency room for word of his condition. He was always ready with a smile and a quick quip, joke or advice, but thinking about it, Judy realized that he never socialized with any of them outside of work. The only ones she knew who he had let into his life were herself and Finnick and this was a painfully humbling experience. It struck her then that if the doctor was asking about family, Nick's condition must be… Dr. Tuskson wrote something down on his clipboard as Judy's mind twisted in apprehension before the warthog again turned his attention to back to her.</p>
<p>"The surgery was successful in removing the wood that had impaled Officer Wilde's shoulder, but there were complications," he began his voice gentling slightly. Judy felt the blood drain from her face at the word 'complications'. "The wood splintered inside his shoulder upon impact. We were finally able to remove all of the shards, but one had nicked the axillary artery. We were able to get the bleeding under control, but his blood loss was significant," he explained. "We treated him for various other injuries, a few minor first degree burns as well as a deep laceration to his right side that thankfully did not damage anything vital. He also suffered from three fractured ribs on his right ride, a collapsed lung as well as smoke inhalation. He will have to remain on oxygen for the next few days until his lungs have had a chance to recover," the doctor finally finished listing Nick's extensive injuries, each one feeling like the lash of a whip that cut through her flesh and was rubbed vigorously with salt.</p>
<p>With this pronouncement, Judy was able to find her voice and cling to what felt like a sliver of hope that had been offered. "But, he'll be okay, right?" she wondered in a small voice.</p>
<p>"He will be weak and in a great deal of pain, but if he gets the appropriate amount of rest, he will recover from his injuries," the doctor affirmed and Judy learned to breathe again.</p>
<p>An orderly followed by a nurse, wheeled Nick, lying upon a bed, past them and into the room. Judy felt herself crumple at the sight of Nick, still unconscious, with an oxygen mask covering his muzzle and an intravenous tube attached to his arm which led to a saline bag hanging from a metal rod attached to the bed.</p>
<p>Dr. Tuskson walked into the room and Judy followed, having eyes only for Nick. His fur had been cleaned free of blood and soot, a white blanket had been pulled up to his waist exposing the thick, white, heavy bandages around his shoulder. Judy was able to see that most of his injuries were concentrated on his right side, but for the wood that had pierced his left shoulder. His fur had been shaved down to the skin in places where it had either been singed or where he had suffered a laceration that had needed to be stitched closed.</p>
<p>Taking small, hesitant steps, she slowly made her way to the bedside. The nurse had a private aside with the doctor for a moment, handing him a folder as Judy reached out and gently took Nick's right paw in her own.</p>
<p>"Officer Wilde should be more awake and alert in a few minutes," Dr. Tuskson explained as the nurse, a young deer, stepped away and began checking the heart monitor and the intravenous drip. "We will monitor him here for the first week to see how he is healing, and if he is recovering well, he will be released," he informed her. "His belongings have been placed in a sealed bag placed in that locker," Dr. Tuskson said as he pointed to the left of the bed.</p>
<p>She glanced over at the metal locker, very similar to what was in their locker rooms at the ZPD, and gave a nod of understanding. A nurse knocked on the doorjamb and after a nod from the doctor, entered. The antelope talked softly to the doctor for a moment, before he gave a swift nod.</p>
<p>"We can't allow Officer Wilde any visitors besides family at the moment," Dr. Tuskson informed her. Judy was about to vehemently protest this but was stopped as the warthog raised a hoof, cutting her off. "I believe it will be important to have a familiar face for him to see when he wakes up and as he has no family and you are his emergency contact as well as his partner, you will be allowed to stay. Though, I would recommend you go home and get some rest as well. When we have fully assessed Officer Wilde's injuries we shall allow one or two visitors at a time, if he is up for them, in a day or two."</p>
<p>She let out her pent up breath. "If…if family is allowed, then Finnick should be allowed in here. He is the closest thing to family Nick has," she told the doctor.</p>
<p>"I shall allow it," Dr. Tuskson agreed and motioned for the young antelope to fetch Finnick from the waiting room. Judy smiled, grateful for the allowance of Finnick's presence. "Also, you have a very insistent visitor waiting in the hallway," the warthog informed her.</p>
<p>Judy felt her eyes widen in shock, the thought of tearing herself away from Nick's bedside untenable.</p>
<p>Dr. Tuskson must have seen the panic on her face because he assured her kindly, "He will not be awake for a few minutes yet." He gestured with his hoof and Judy looked back at Nick's face, relaxed as it was in sleep.</p>
<p>She gave his hand a quick squeeze before reluctantly slipping from the chair. She followed the warthog into the hallway where she was surprised to see Chief Bogo pacing back and forth. "Ch-Chief Bogo," she gasped in shock.</p>
<p>"Officer Hopps," the Chief acknowledged his voice low and strained.</p>
<p>"Sir," she said, her mind racing. "I-" Judy had broken down too many times within the last few hours and she knew that she needed to hold herself together, especially in front of Chief Bogo.</p>
<p>The Cape buffalo must have seen her distress because she could see him pale beneath his short, dark fur. "Officer Wilde?" he asked softly.</p>
<p>Realizing that she had given the wrong impression she quickly assured the Chief that Nick was going to be okay. "H-he'll recover. But…I nearly… If I had just-"</p>
<p>"Officer Hopps," Chief Bogo's voice was sharp and Judy felt her body automatically react to the deep baritone as her spine straightened and she stood stiffly at attention. "You have a habit of abandoning your posts, straying from your assigned duties, and taking matters into your own paws."</p>
<p>Judy felt her muscles tense at Chief Bogo's words sensing that the Cape buffalo was furious with her and with good reason. Her assignment had been to observe and report back. For all she knew, the ocelot's greatest crime was stealing expensive suits, and for that, she had risked the entire operation. She felt her shoulders slump.</p>
<p>"That being said," Chief Bogo continued. "You have excellent instincts, which were proved last night. But that is a discussion best left for later," he said dismissively. "Right now we are discussing your actions and how they relate to Officer Wilde." Judy gave a small nod of acknowledgement. "Is it your fault Officer Wilde was injured?" he asked, but did not give her a chance to answer when he supplied, "Yes it is." She flinched. "But Officer Wilde is your partner. Besides keeping law and order and bringing justice to the streets of Zootopia his job is to protect you, just as it is your job to protect him."</p>
<p>Judy stared at her feet as she fought back tears. "Y-yes, Sir and I accept full responsibility and-"</p>
<p>"Officer Hopps," Chief Bogo interrupted, "Officer Wilde was injured in the line of duty. He was doing his job. If he holds you accountable for his injuries, then he was not meant to be a cop," Chief Bogo stated harshly.</p>
<p>"But Chief," she protested. "You don't know-"</p>
<p>"I read your statement, Officer Hopps. I have a pretty good idea of what happened," he interrupted brusquely.</p>
<p>"M-my statement?" she questioned in confusion.</p>
<p>"You gave it to Officer Razorback after you were released," Chief Bogo informed her as his voice gentled slightly.</p>
<p>"I did?" she asked dazedly, not even able to recall doing such a thing.</p>
<p>He nodded, his harsh features softening. "It has been a long night for you, and I know you will want to stay here, but you also need to get some rest. When the doctor gives you leave to return to duty, I expect to see you back in my office and ready for assignment."</p>
<p>Judy gave a nod, feeling oddly disconnected and a little overwhelmed. "The ocelot?" she asked softly.</p>
<p>"In the wind," he answered, briskly. "We are still canvassing the area, but even when our officers find a mammal to talk to, no one saw anything. Conveniently," he snarled. "But that is not something for you to worry about right now."</p>
<p>"Bunny Cop," Finnick's voice drifted down the hallway as he quickly made his way towards Nick's room. "Is Nick awake yet?" he asked, completely ignoring Chief Bogo's presence.</p>
<p>She glanced back at the room where Nick was still lying unconscious upon the bed. "Not yet, but hopefully he will be soon," she replied with a hopeful note in her voice.</p>
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  <strong>And yes, that is where I am going to leave I hope you enjoyed!</strong>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello all, I am so glad you guys are enjoying the fic so far. I will continue to post these chapters weekly.<br/>Please enjoy!</p>
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    <p><strong>Nick</strong> floated through a misty haze of half-formed thoughts and images that slowly drifted around him.</p>
    <p>He felt as if there was something -something very important- that he needed to remember, but it rested just beyond his ability to grasp it.</p>
    <p>Out of the thick, muzzy fog that had wrapped him up and cocooned him in soft cotton, one image began to gain substance and form.</p>
    <p>Judy.</p>
    <p>She looked at him beseechingly, her eyes brimming with tears and full of fear as she reached out for him, calling his name.</p>
    <p>Heart in his throat, he stretched out his paw for her, but it seemed as if she only moved further and further away from him.</p>
    <p>He called out her name as he ran towards her, but a flaming beam suddenly fell in front of him, blocking his way.</p>
    <p>Judy screamed his name, her voice shaking in fear as he shouted her name in return.</p>
    <p>His head swung around looking for a way to get to her, but she was completely surrounded by the blazing inferno.</p>
    <p>"Nick!" she cried out from behind the burning wooden structure that surrounded her like a fiery cage.</p>
    <p>"Judy!" Panic seized him and sat heavily upon his chest, crushing the breath from his lungs as he fought to get to her, but she vanished before his eyes, consumed by the ravenous flames, her scream echoing in his mind as-</p>
    <p>His eyes shot open.</p>
    <p>Movement, bright lights, the smell of antiseptic, illness, blood, and other mammals -unfamiliar mammals- flooded his senses and caused a wave of terror to wash through him.</p>
    <p>Paws were grabbing at him, trying to hold him down, but Judy's terror was too fresh and so very real to his confused mind and he needed to get to her, but-</p>
    <p>Judy was gone.</p>
    <p>He hadn't been able to save her. He remembered that.</p>
    <p>Sudden agony ripped through him causing his back to arch; the movement sending near blinding pain to ravage his already tormented body.</p>
    <p>His vision focused and was filled with the visages of an angry warthog, a panicked deer and…Chief Bogo?</p>
    <p>He blinked in confusion, his body sagging back against the soft surface he was lying upon, his limbs suddenly feeling very heavy, like they had turned to lead.</p>
    <p>The intense pain that had wracked every muscle, bone, strand of fur, and whisker in his body was beginning to ebb and his mind was slowly filling with a thick, dense mist.</p>
    <p>Feeling disconnected, something was placed over his muzzle and his head flopped to the side where Finnick and Judy were both talking too softly for him to hear what they were saying, their eyes looking at him with concern and distress.</p>
    <p>His heavy eyelids slipped closed.</p>
    <p>It was a nice dream.</p>
    <p>He didn't understand why Chief Bogo and Finnick were in it, or a warthog doctor and a deer nurse, but he didn't care: Judy had been there.</p>
    <p>Her large violet eyes had looked at him with concern and something else, something…deeper, gentler even.</p>
    <hr/>
    <p><strong>Judy</strong> looked on as Nick settled down, the doctor having ordered the nurse to sedate him before he hurt himself.</p>
    <p>Trying to stay out of the way after she and Finnick had rushed into the room, Chief Bogo had followed and helped Dr. Tuskson keep Nick from thrashing around.</p>
    <p>Within moments of the sedative being pushed into the IV, Nick relaxed, his eyes becoming half-lidded as he looked at her with a kind of groggy incomprehension.</p>
    <p>"Nick, I'm here," she told him in a shaking voice. "You're going to be okay," she soothed, reaching for his paw and squeezing it tightly in her own as his eyes slid the rest of the way shut.</p>
    <p>She looked to the doctor for an explanation as to why Nick had reacted in panicked desperation when he had regained consciousness.</p>
    <p>Dr. Tuskson was frowning in concern, but his face was also speculative. "It isn't unusual for a patient that has suffered severe trauma to react with confusion and fear when awaking in the hospital," the doctor easily explained. "When the sedative wears off I hope he will be a little more lucid and less agitated," he said to them as he transferred his attention to Chief Bogo. "As Officer Wilde was injured in the line of duty, I will begin filling out the required paperwork in regards to his required medical leave."</p>
    <p>Chief Bogo gave a curt nod of acknowledgement. "Officer Wilde will be allowed as much time as he needs."</p>
    <p>Doctor Tuskson jotted something down in Nick's file and placed it in the holder at the end of Nick's bed before escorting Chief Bogo out into the hall, leaving her, Finnick, and the nurse alone in the room.</p>
    <p>Letting go of Nick's paw, Judy pulled the chair closer to the bed before hopping up and settling down on the hard, mint-green, vinyl surface. Taking Nick's paw into hers again, she studied his face, looking for any signs of the previous distress and pain he had suffered and relaxed when she detected none.</p>
    <p>Finnick let out a huff and climbed up on the chair, sitting down beside her.</p>
    <p>The nurse fussed with Nick's bedding and made a tsk-ing sound when she pulled away the bandages at Nick's shoulder revealing them to be bloody, indicating he had reopened the wound.</p>
    <p>With quick efficiency, the nurse, Juliette, peeled away the bloodied bandages, inspected the wound and after deeming it to be okay, re-bandaged his shoulder.</p>
    <p>Dr. Tuskson re-entered the room a few minutes later, Juliette leaving as the warthog closed the door behind her. "I have sent Chief Bogo to clear my waiting room of officers and told him to go home. It has been a long night for all of you," he said kindly as he sat down in one of the chairs at the foot of Nick's bed. "I also wished to speak to you privately," he said to Finnick.</p>
    <p>Judy felt a jolt, like electricity shooting up her spine as she stared at the warthog with unease; Finnick stiffened beside her.</p>
    <p>"Officer Hopps has indicated that you are the closest mammal Officer Wilde has to family," Dr. Tuskson began persuasively.</p>
    <p>"No," the small fox said shaking his head back and forth. "Whatever it is you're sellin' I ain't buying," Finnick snapped.</p>
    <p>The warthog was not surprised or intimidated by Finnick's manner and continued. "The injuries Officer Wilde suffered are severe. After he is discharged from the hospital he will be unable to function alone for at least a few days. He will need care and support at home and I would recommend that someone stay with him until he is able to look after himself. "</p>
    <p>"Uh-uh. I don't do care and I don't do support," Finnick said with a shake of his head, as if asking for him to help his friend was an affront to his very nature.</p>
    <p>At this, Dr. Tuskson seemed a little stunned, his eyes glancing at Judy for a moment before returning to Finnick.</p>
    <p>"I know it is a lot to ask-"</p>
    <p>"A lot to ask?" Finnick interrupted as he stood up on the chair, his fur standing up on end, bristling with indignation. "I-"</p>
    <p>A knock on the door interrupted whatever it was Finnick was about to say. The doctor stood and walked to the door, opening it.</p>
    <p>A beaver stood just outside wearing blue scrubs as she gave Dr. Tuskson a chart.</p>
    <p>"Please, excuse me," he apologized. "I have another patient I must attend to," he explained. "Officer Wilde will wake up in a few hours, hopefully a little more aware of his surroundings. While I am gone," he addressed Finnick, "please, just think about what I have asked," he said as he walked from the room, closing the door behind him as he left.</p>
    <p>"Finnick," Judy hissed in protest.</p>
    <p>"Don't 'Finnick' me," he snapped, shaking his head back and forth as he slid from the chair and turned towards her. "I ain't no nursemaid, taking time off work to babysit my ex-partner." He leveled an unfriendly look at her. "Seems to me, Bunny Cop, that you're the one who got him into this mess, so you can be the one to clean it up."</p>
    <p>With these cutting words, Finnick stalked towards the door.</p>
    <p>Judy stared at Finnick opened-mouthed, stung by his sharp words, but knowing that they were only the absolute truth. She had convinced Nick to become a police officer in the first place, and this combined with why Nick had been in the building when the bomb had gone off only served to remind her that it <em>was</em> her fault that Nick was lying in the hospital, severely injured.</p>
    <p>Blinking back tears, she felt her ears droop in despair as she stared intensely at her paw, still tightly clutching Nick's.</p>
    <p>She heard a huff from the door that caused her to look up in surprise at Finnick, who was still in the room, his paw reaching for the knob.</p>
    <p>"Listen," Finnick began his voice losing its angry edge, "You gotta know that since Nick met you, I've never seen him happier, and I'm not talkin' about him bein' a cop," he stated and Judy understood that he was referring to her friendship with Nick, but it felt like he was implying something else. Not able to puzzle this out at the moment, she watched as Finnick stared at his feet for a minute before looking up and catching her eyes again. "I'm not the patient type. I know there's no way I can take care of him. He doesn't need me, he needs <em>you</em>."</p>
    <p>Judy had a sudden flash of insight and she wondered if her friendship with Nick had gotten in the way of Nick's friendship with Finnick. She'd never thought about it before. Though Finnick was generally surly, she hadn't thought that he disliked her, but it was possible that perhaps he was jealous of her for taking up so much of Nick's time.</p>
    <p>But it didn't matter that Nick had begun to leave much of his old life and Finnick behind. Right now Nick needed Finnick, not her, because…</p>
    <p>"He…he's never going to forgive me," she whispered miserably. "He'll hate me, just like you h-hate me and-"</p>
    <p>"I don't hate you, Bunny Cop," Finnick interrupted sharply with a quick shake of his head, "and neither will Nick," he stated firmly, but Judy couldn't quite allow herself to believe his assurances.</p>
    <p>Finnick opened the door and Judy could only stare, not able to believe he was just going to walk away from Nick when he needed him the most.</p>
    <p>"I'm grabbing some coffee," Finnick said as he hovered at the door. "But you need anything, <em>anything at all</em>…" he let the sentence hang and Judy knew he wasn't referring to coffee.</p>
    <p>She gave a watery smile of understanding and nodded, the lump that had risen in her throat preventing her from speaking.</p>
    <p>Finnick turned and walked from the room, shutting the door behind him.</p>
    <p>She supposed it was selfish of her to focus so intently upon this when her thoughts should instead be centered upon Nick's comfort and well-being, but she couldn't seem to help it.</p>
    <p>Judy turned attention back to Nick, pushing away her fears that he would blame her and never be able to forgive her.</p>
    <p>Her heart ached that Nick had been so frightened and anxious when he had first awoke and she hoped that when he regained consciousness again, that he would be lucid and realize that he was safe and recovering in the hospital.</p>
    <p>Feeling at odds with her current inert state and her erratic thoughts and emotions, she began to fuss. She crawled onto the side of the bed, pulling up Nick's blanket a little further to keep him warm and smoothing back some of the fur across his cheek which had been mussed during the tussle with the doctor and nurse.</p>
    <p>Taking her seat again, she took Nick's paw in her own and leaned forward so that her cheek lay against his paw as she recited in her head the words of profuse apology she was going to give him.</p>
    <p>Sometime during this internal monologue she must have fallen asleep because her eyes suddenly flew open at the sound of a polite cough; the remnants of what felt like a nightmare -Nick's face snarling with disgust and hatred as he turned away from her forever- drifting from her consciousness, leaving only an impression of devastation and a bitter taste in her mouth.</p>
    <p>"I'm sorry," she said as she shook off her lethargy, looking around in brief confusion as Dr. Tuskson approached the bed where Nick was still sleeping soundly. His breathing was still heavy and laboured, but he was breathing, and that was all she really cared about.</p>
    <p>"You needed the rest. You should be at home sleeping right now," the warthog informed her sternly before he glanced around the room. "I take it Mr. Finnick was not able to be convinced to stay with Officer Wilde for a few days?"</p>
    <p>Her eyes darted around the room, looking for the small fennec fox, wondering how long she had been sleeping for, and how long getting a cup of coffee took. It was possible that Finnick had left, or maybe he had decided to go to a Snarlbucks and grab a decent cup of coffee as opposed the vending machine swill that was offered. Either way, she knew that Finnick's intentions were to give her any support she needed.</p>
    <p>"We worked things out," she said as she took a deep, steadying breath and sat up straighter. "I'll stay with Nick for as long as he needs me to," she stated, firmly stomping down on the tiny, dark whisper of guilt and uncertainty of Nick's reaction to her when he woke up.</p>
    <p>The warthog gave her an unsure look.</p>
    <p>"I grew up with two-hundred and seventy-five siblings," she stated with confidence. "Looking after one fox will be easy."</p>
    <p>"Yes, but…forgive me Officer Hopps, you're a-"</p>
    <p>Judy frowned. "Bunny?" she asked, interrupting the warthog and about to berate the doctor if he even implied that she was putting herself in danger somehow because Nick was a predator and she was prey.</p>
    <p>"Female," he quickly inserted.</p>
    <p>Judy felt her indignation vanish, stunned by the doctor's words.</p>
    <p>"My concern is that Officer Wilde may not be comfortable in allowing you to help him dress, undress, bathe-"</p>
    <p>"I get it!" she cut the doctor off before he painted a picture, but it was too late, her cheeks already felt warm with embarrassment.</p>
    <p>She gave a slight shake of her head, trying to dislodge the image of Nick naked from her mind and not dwelling on why this did something to her heart and flooded her body with heat. "Finnick will be helping me," she lied, knowing that there would be no way she would be able to get Finnick to help her give Nick a bath. But she was optimistic that she would be able to figure it out without putting either of them in an uncomfortable situation.</p>
    <p>"Good, good," Dr. Tuskson said with a quick nod as he explained the care that would be required for Nick's injuries after he was released from the hospital and the length of time for a complete recovery.</p>
    <p>Listening to the doctor, she felt her shoulders slump when she heard that it would be around three months before Nick recovered from his injuries.</p>
    <p>Three months was a long time, but felt manageable. The doctor informed her that this was just an approximation, which meant his recovery could be longer, but he was optimistic that this wouldn't be the case.</p>
    <p>"However," Dr. Tuskson warned, "his shoulder will need months of physiotherapy. His total recovery time will probably be closer to six months."</p>
    <p>Judy could only stare at Dr. Tuskson with a stunned expression. She had known it was going to take time for Nick to recover, but she hadn't realized just how long. Giving a nod of comprehension she steadied herself, a fire of determination lighting itself inside of her.</p>
    <p>Nick was going to be okay, he would heal; it would just take time.</p>
    <p>And she was going to stay by Nick's side, whether he wanted her to or not, because whatever his feeling were for her, he was still the most important mammal to her in her life besides her family and she wasn't going to let him go without one huge, throw down, winner takes all fight.</p>
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    <p><strong>Nick</strong> groaned as he crinkled his muzzle in disgust.</p>
    <p>There was an awful taste in his mouth, something akin to a wool sweater that he had decided to suck on for an indeterminable length of time; the fuzzy taste clinging to his tongue with a surprising amount of tenacity.</p>
    <p>Frowning, his consciousness tried to combat its way through the cobwebs that had taken up residence in his brain, his memory murky and his thoughts fractured and incoherent. Licking his parched lips, he felt as if he had been drugged and it hurt to breathe; each small intake of air a gasping struggle that caused small bubbles of agony to burst within his lungs.</p>
    <p>Awareness of something covering his snout managed to pierce the lethargic haze that clouded his mind sending adrenalin bursting through his veins. His eyes shot open in confusion, fear that he had been muzzled for some reason shooting tiny sparks of shame and terror through him.</p>
    <p>Gentle but firm paws cupped his cheeks forcing him to turn his head until he was looking into wide, violet eyes, bright with the shimmer of tears.</p>
    <p>He froze.</p>
    <p>Time slowed as he stared at Judy in disbelief, his mind not quite able to believe what his eyes were showing him.</p>
    <p>It had to be a dream, like the last one. There was no way she could have…</p>
    <p>The building had fallen down around him and he had been further from the blast than she had been.</p>
    <p>He made to sit up, and instantly regretted this slight movement. He gave a shout of pain, his body instantly recoiling and sending scalding, liquid fire burning through his veins. His right arm snaked around Judy's shoulders and gently held the back of her head pulling her forward and into him, closing his eyes tightly as he reveled in the feel of her fur beneath his pads.</p>
    <p>He didn't care what kind of agony he had to suffer -he would suffer it gladly- because he had never thought that he would see her again.</p>
    <p>The fact that she was alive…</p>
    <p>He wanted to pull her closer to wrap his other arm around her and beg her forgiveness, but he found that he couldn't seem to move his other arm and his chest felt so tight, every movement a small spike of agony being driven through his torso, but he ignored it all because Judy was curled into him, clinging to him, her shoulders shaking as her tears wet his fur.</p>
    <p>She pulled away first and though he reluctantly let her go, he thought the trade-off of looking into her eyes while greedily memorizing every single strand of fur and feature of her beautiful face was worth it.</p>
    <p>Panting heavily, his body rebelling against the strain he was inflicting upon it, he gritted his teeth together, noticing the bandage across her cheek and hating that she had been hurt at all.</p>
    <p>Staring at her, he couldn't believe she was alive, and he voiced these exact sentiments. As his words left his lips he had a strange sense that there was something wrong.</p>
    <p>Judy was fiercely wiping away her tears, her head shaking back and forth as she poured forth an anguished reply, or he had to assume that this is what was happening because he couldn't seem to hear what she was saying.</p>
    <p>Quickly yanking his oxygen mask free, Judy looked at him in alarm. Again she was speaking, but no sound was reaching his ears. He asked her to repeat herself and he realized that he couldn't even hear his own voice.</p>
    <p>Judy's eyes shot to the left and he followed her gaze, meeting the concerned face of a warthog.</p>
    <p>His focus expanded encompassing the whole room, his eyes flitting around as he observed that he was in the hospital, which made sense, and he had known it in an abstract kind of way, but finding Judy alive had been way more important than his surroundings.</p>
    <p>Nick's attention was suddenly caught by Finnick, walking into the room, a cup of coffee in his one hand, a bag of chips in the other, looking ragged and in an even worse mood than he was usually in.</p>
    <p>Meeting his friend's gaze, he realized that if Finnick was there, had been in the hospital long enough to actually spend money on coffee and food from a vending machine, that Nick must be in a bad way.</p>
    <p>Anything short of him being on his death bed would not cause the fennec fox to bestir himself from his van.</p>
    <p>Finnick was saying something, his attention shooting to Judy before he started yelling something at the warthog who appeared to be the doctor.</p>
    <p>In a daze of disbelief Nick lay back against his pillows, his words of, 'I can't hear…anything,' heard by everyone in the room but him.</p>
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      <strong>*Gasp*</strong>
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      <strong>Yes, that is where I am leaving it, because I am evil XD</strong>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you to everyone who has left Kuddos and reviews!!!<br/>I hope you all enjoy this next chapter!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p><strong>Judy</strong> stared at Nick with startled, dumbstruck incredulity which swiftly turned to unwavering horror.</p>
      <p>When Nick had opened his eyes, the relief she had found when he had looked at her, his shock turning to near tearful joy at her being alive, was nearly overwhelming.</p>
      <p>Pulled against his battered and injured chest, she had felt herself mold to his frame, not thinking about how much her weight was hurting him or that she was being embraced by her partner in front of the doctor, all she cared about was that he was holding her to him tightly; as if he never wanted to let her go.</p>
      <p>She had wanted to stay in this small bubble of contentment forever, but she knew they couldn't because as she sobbed into his neck, she needed to confess her guilt and let him know that no matter what he thought of her, she was not going to let him turn his back on her, not until he had fully recovered. If he was not able to forgive her by then, she would accept that he never would and she would allow him to walk away.</p>
      <p>Pulling away, she noticed his breathing was worse, more strained as he panted heavily into his oxygen mask and she could see what his action of embracing her had cost him, his eyes blurry with pain.</p>
      <p>"I can't believe that you're alive," he whispered in a gasping voice.</p>
      <p>She had felt her resolve to stay strong crumble as she poured out the whole story to him, her paw dashing the tears away from her cheeks as she explained what had happened. Nick had stared at her blankly, his expression confused.</p>
      <p>Tearing the oxygen mask from his snout, he asked her to repeat herself.</p>
      <p>At first she had thought he was angry, but his voice hadn't been accusatory, more panicked. Then she had believed that she may have been unintelligible as she had sobbed out her tale, her words quavering with emotion, but she realized that this didn't appear to be the case.</p>
      <p>Her eyes shifted to Dr. Tuskson who looked contemplative.</p>
      <p>Nick's gaze darted around the room while she began talking again, her voice louder and measured, her words clearer than they had been, but he didn't seem to be listening, and she had attempted to stomp down on the small seed of doubt that was blooming in her mind when Nick's attention was caught by Finnick, who strolled into the room.</p>
      <p>Judy had been thankful at the fennec fox's return, but Nick seemed even more distressed by his friend's presence.</p>
      <p>"What's going on, Bunny Cop?" Finnick asked in a surly voice.</p>
      <p>Her gaze locked upon the diminutive fox, she tried to find her voice. After a few false starts she dragged her attention back to Nick, the look of dawning horror in his face reflected in her own as she numbly answered, "I…I don't think Nick can hear us."</p>
      <p>"What?!" Finnick snarled angrily, rounding on the doctor. "What the fuck does she mean he can't hear?!"</p>
      <p>Judy flinched at Finnick's language but was too busy processing her own terrifying suspicions to even respond.</p>
      <p>Nick slowly lay back upon his bed, his expression blank. "I can't hear…anything," he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper.</p>
      <p>Dr. Tuskson approached the bed and Judy scrambled out of the way.</p>
      <p>Nick continued to stare straight ahead even as Dr. Tuskson moved behind the bed. Leaning in close to Nick's ears, and out of Nick's line of sight he called out loudly, "Officer Wilde!"</p>
      <p>Judy waited for Nick to react, to snap at being yelled at, but Nick didn't even flinch.</p>
      <p>"What was that for?" Finnick growled, his fur standing up on end, his lips pulled away from his teeth in an angry snarl.</p>
      <p>"I had my suspicions," the doctor signed in resignation. "Although my belief that Officer Wilde's reaction to waking up in the hospital in an extremely confused and agitated state due to the trauma he suffered was true, I noticed that there appeared to be no response to auditory stimulus as well as a lack of movement from the auriculares muscles that may have contributed greatly to his initial negative response," he stated.</p>
      <p>Judy felt her heart clench in fear as she attempted to understand what auriculares muscles were, and how bad it was that they hadn't reacted.</p>
      <p>Her chaotic thoughts tumbled end over end as a multitude of complications, each more horrible than the last, flitted through her mind before she was finally able to find her voice and ask, "Auricilares muscles?"</p>
      <p>The doctor took an otoscope from where it was positioned in a holder on the wall above Nick's head and answered, "They are the muscles that allow mammals to rotate and move their ears. The fact that Officer Wilde's ears did not initially respond was worrisome, but now that Officer Wilde has confirmed that he cannot seem to hear as well as the continued lack of response from his ears confirmed my earlier suspicions that he has suffered some degree of hearing loss."</p>
      <p>Judy watched with apprehension as Dr. Tuskson gained Nick's attention, pointed at the otoscope and motioned to Nick's ears.</p>
      <p>Nick seemed to understand and he nodded. The doctor placed the oxygen mask back over Nick's snout before the warthog leaned over the bed and peered into Nick's right ear before moving to the left side of the bed and checking the other.</p>
      <p>Walking back to the bed, Judy reached out and took Nick's paw in her own. Normally she would have been embarrassed by this action while Nick was conscious, but she couldn't seem to find it in her to care, and apparently neither could Nick because he gripped her paw so tightly, she felt as if he would break it, but she didn't make any show of discomfort.</p>
      <p>They waited, Finnick pacing back and forth in agitation while Nick held still, his body quivering slightly as Judy felt dread sliding along her fur.</p>
      <p>She quelled the nearly overwhelming need to press the doctor for further information, while at the same time terrified of his diagnosis.</p>
      <p>"It appears that the explosion has ruptured the tympanic membranes in both of Officer Wilde's ears."</p>
      <p>Judy felt her breath hitch as she stared at the doctor with horrified incomprehension.</p>
      <p>"His eardrums," the doctor elucidated.</p>
      <p>Her mind processed the warthog's words, but it was like she was unable to fully grasp the importance of them.</p>
      <p>Thankfully, Finnick did not seem to be suffering the same kind of mental block that she was. He leapt up, stood upon the chair, looked straight into Dr. Tuskson's eyes and bit out, "You saying that Nick here is…is…<em>deaf</em>?" His voice was incredulous, angry and it was almost as if he was daring the doctor to affirm this conclusion.</p>
      <p>"That is not something we can fully assess at this time," he explained evenly, not intimidated by Finnick's posturing. "We will run some further tests to determine to what degree Officer Wilde 's hearing has been compromised, but I think we can safely say that at this time it appears that Officer Wilde is currently suffering from near-complete to total hearing loss."</p>
      <p>Judy sagged and Finnick's ears drooped.</p>
      <p>"This of course does not mean his hearing will never return," Dr. Tuskson informed them in a soothing voice. "Under normal circumstances if an eardrum is ruptured the membrane will heal and any hearing loss -either partial or complete- that occurred will usually be restored."</p>
      <p>"But?" Judy questioned, noting the doctor had implied that the circumstances were not normal.</p>
      <p>"My concern is that unlike other causes of ruptured eardrums such as infection, perforation from a foreign object, or even a damaging decibel level that can rupture the thin membrane- an explosion also produces a shockwave. This can damage the cochlea which is located in the inner ear. If this has happened then I'm afraid that even when his eardrums heal, his hearing loss will be permanent."</p>
      <p>Judy stared numbly at the warthog, the silence only broken by the sound of the heart monitor and the hiss of the oxygen being pumped into Nick's oxygen mask.</p>
      <p>Finnick deflated as he slowly slumped back onto the seat of the chair, his face immobile with shock.</p>
      <p>"W-when will we know?" she asked, trying to keep the despondency out of her quavering voice.</p>
      <p>"It will take around three months for his tympanic membranes to completely heal. If his hearing does not return or improve while it is healing or after it has completely healed, it will indicate that the cochlea was in fact damaged and we will know for certain that his hearing loss is permanent."</p>
      <p>"T-three months?" she gasped in shock.</p>
      <p>"As long as he does not suffer from an inner ear infection, which could create complications for his recovery, yes," he assured her. "But as I said, it is possible he will recover some of his hearing before then," he said in a gentle voice.</p>
      <p>"I…" Nick's hoarse, shaking voice began. "I'm guessing by your guys' expressions that it's not good news."</p>
      <p>Judy slowly turned her head and looked at Nick in the eyes.</p>
      <p><em>I will not cry, I will not cry, I will not cry,</em> she repeated to herself as she swallowed roughly, trying to figure out what she was going to say before realizing it didn't matter because he wouldn't be able to hear her anyway. She could only shake her head in a positive or negative way, or she supposed, shrug, indicating she was unsure.</p>
      <p>This seemed to snap Finnick out of whatever internal reverie he was having as he looked up, snarled something under his breath, and slid from the chair.</p>
      <p>"Finnick!" she called out as the small fox stomped from the room.</p>
      <p>"He's probably just angry that I'm only deaf and not dying," Nick quipped and Judy's attention snapped back to Nick, about to berate him for making light of his situation when she realized, looking into his fearful, panic-filled eyes, that he was breaking inside and he was barely keeping himself together.</p>
      <p>"Oh, Nick!" she cried out softly, feeling completely powerless to help him and she hated it.</p>
      <p>Dr. Tuskson cleared his throat causing Judy to shift her attention to the doctor. "I would like to run a few more tests to determine the extent of Officer Wilde's hearing loss and afterwards, I recommend that you go home, Officer Hopps, and get some rest."</p>
      <p>His words had the effect of causing her anguish to evaporate and her anger to flare brightly. "You can't expect me to leave Nick all alone after he had just found out that he can't hear anything?!" she bit out incredulously.</p>
      <p>"He needs to rest, and he won't be able to do that if he knows you are sitting here worrying yourself sick," the doctor pointed out reasonably and she found that she was unable to argue his point, no matter how much she hated it.</p>
      <p>"I'm staying as long as I can," she countered fiercely.</p>
      <p>"Officer Hopps," Dr. Tuskson began with a resigned sigh, "you were involved in a traumatic incident last night where you and your partner nearly lost your lives and where Officer Wilde was seriously injured. You need to process all of this and allow your body to rest and heal as well because when the adrenalin of the night finally wears off, you are going to feel it all. Also, because Officer Wilde is going to need far more support than I initially anticipated," he explained. "His physical injuries aside, adjusting to losing one's sense of hearing will be hard and even though there is a small chance he will recover it, it is a frightening prospect and a huge adjustment in the interim. The psychological effects alone are very damaging as he could suffer from depression as well as some degree of post-traumatic stress."</p>
      <p>Judy felt her heart drop and twist with renewed agony. She couldn't even imagine what Nick was going through right now and the long, painful recovery that lay ahead of him both physical and mental.</p>
      <p>Dr. Tuskson grabbed Nick's chart from the end of his bed and wrote something down, turning the page to Nick who nodded.</p>
      <p>"More tests," Nick said with a small quaver in his voice.</p>
      <p>"A technician will return soon with the equipment and a nurse will check on him as well," Dr. Tuskson said before he left the room, leaving Nick and Judy alone.</p>
      <p>The silence settled uncomfortably in the room and Judy stared at Nick's paw clasped within her own, not knowing what to say and knowing her words wouldn't reach him anyway, which made her feel more miserable than she thought possible.</p>
      <p>"It feels like a funeral in here," Finnick grumbled as he strode into the room holding a rectangular object in his paws. "He's deaf, and probably not even permanently. It just means that for the next little bit, he doesn't get to enjoy the sound of his own voice."</p>
      <p>"Finnick, we don't know-" Judy began wretchedly, but Finnick waved away her words.</p>
      <p>"Whatever," he said as he walked over to the chair and showed her what looked like a whiteboard that was nearly as big as Finnick. "This will help you two to talk."</p>
      <p>"W-where did you get this?" she asked, letting go of Nick's paw and looking at what appeared to be a cleaning schedule of some sort written in blue marker.</p>
      <p>"Break room," he said with a shrug as he pulled a dry-erase marker and eraser from his pockets and erased the writing.</p>
      <p>"You stole it?" Judy whispered as her eyes darted around the room anxiously.</p>
      <p>"I borrowed it," he countered, waving off her indignant concern. "If you don't want it, I can take it-"</p>
      <p>"No!" Judy practically shouted. "I'll just…put it back when I'm done."</p>
      <p>"That's what I thought," Finnick said as he nodded balancing the board in his paw while pulling the marker lid off with his teeth. With his other paw he wrote something, popped the lid back on, and turned the white board back around so that Nick could read what he had written.</p>
      <p>
        <strong>YOU END UP IN THE HOSPITAL AGAIN</strong>
      </p>
      <p>
        <strong>I'LL BITE YOUR FACE OFF!</strong>
      </p>
      <p>Nick read the message and gave a slight smile. "That threat's getting old," Nick observed flippantly, his voice rough and wheezing, but Judy could see the sheen of tears in Nick's eyes. "Maybe while I'm recovering, you can think of a new one."</p>
      <p>Something seemed to pass between the two friends before Finnick gave a huff. "I'm outta here," he said as he shoved the whiteboard, marker, and eraser into Judy's hands. "And you had better look after him, Cotton Tail," he snarled, baring his teeth dangerously.</p>
      <p>Judy bit down on her instant retort to Finnick that if he was so worried about her ability to take care of Nick, that he could actually pitch in and help as opposed to dumping the whole responsibility on her, but she didn't. They'd already had that conversation and she could sense that beneath his gruff, dismissive exterior, the news of Nick's hearing loss had hit the fennec fox hard and he obviously was unable to deal with it at the moment.</p>
      <p>"I will," she promised softly as Finnick scowled at her, turned, and stomped from the room, closing the door behind him.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p><strong>Nick</strong> watched as his two friends traded possibly unfriendly words before Finnick angrily huffed from the room leaving them alone.</p>
      <p>'Did he threaten you?' Nick wondered, not sure if he was talking too loudly or not loud enough, but continued anyway. 'Because if he did, he only threatens the mammals he likes,' he quipped, using humor to drown out the wave of horrified panic that was threatening to consume him completely.</p>
      <p>Judy looked back at him, her gaze nearly unreadable as she placed the whiteboard down on the bed, crawling beside him, and putting the oxygen mask back over his muzzle.</p>
      <p>Nick took one close look into her eyes and ripped it off again. 'I can't talk if that thing is on my face,' he snapped, his temper suddenly tattered and frayed by what he saw in Judy's expressive violet eyes. 'I…I didn't think I'd ever see you again,' he said miserably, trying to ignore the pain that wracked his body and his inability to breathe properly as well as the strangeness of not being able to hear his own words; but knowing that things needed to be said.</p>
      <p>Judy's eyes filled with tears as she shook her head vehemently back and forth before she wrote something beneath Finnick's bolded words.</p>
      <p>Nick hadn't finished what he had been about to say, but her words of, <strong>My fault, </strong>written in blue marker only inflamed his anger.</p>
      <p>The possibility that he would never hear again and the prospect of dealing with this life altering injury was terrifying, but it didn't compare to the belief that Judy had been killed and that he was never going to see her again.</p>
      <p>'I thought that you were <em>dead</em>,' he snapped and she flinched. 'And all I could do was blame myself for not being there to protect you because you ran off and left me behind,' he told her as she stared at him, apparently stunned by his words.</p>
      <p>He reached out with his good paw and cupped her uninjured cheek. This seemed to startle her somewhat but only for a moment as she rested her paw on top of his.</p>
      <p>Every single thought and emotion he had endured as he lay crushed to the floor, believing he was going to die, rushed back to him.</p>
      <p>The raw, nearly painful relief he found at being able to touch her, to speak to her, was nearly overwhelming as was the need to let her know his true feelings. 'Judy,' he began, using her name -something he only did in serious situations- which caught her attention, her small body tensing as she listened intently. 'I-'</p>
      <p>He looked into her eyes, reading the concern, the blame, and the misery that swirled around in the beautiful, violet depths and he found he not only lost his nerve, but for a multitude of other reasons -such as the fear of rejection, the knowledge that what he felt for the doe was wrong, and the reasonable certainty that his feelings would not be returned, as well as the fact that he was currently in a position where the weight of her guilt may cause her to say anything to him to earn his forgiveness- he found he couldn't tell her how much he loved her.</p>
      <p>His heart writhing in agony and shattering, he dropped his paw and Judy's eyes widened in fear, like he was going to blame her now that he knew that she was alive and had escaped harm.</p>
      <p>Ignoring the twinge of hurt he felt at this, for her believing he would ever blame her for anything, he asked, 'Did you get out of the building before it exploded?'</p>
      <p>She shrunk back, her lips quivering as she shook her head negative.</p>
      <p>Nick closed his eyes feeling the weight of his failure settle upon his shoulders. Opening his eyes, he looked at her steadily. 'Smart bunny,' he said, and he meant it.</p>
      <p>The tears that had trembled on her lashes wavered for a moment before they rolled down her cheeks, her eyes full of anguish and she underlined what she had written on the whiteboard several times.</p>
      <p>'Carrots,' he said as he placed his paw gently on her head. He sat up, agony tearing through his body, but he ignored it; what he was about to say was important. He rested his forehead against hers and he guessed that she was protesting his movement, but he was ignoring this in favour of savouring her scent and the fact that she was so very close to him. 'It's not your fault that I got hurt,' he told her gently as she sobbed, her shoulders shaking. 'I wasn't there for you and I should have been, but you're okay,' he stressed as he pulled away and looked at her seriously, her eyes nearly impossibly large pools of anguish, grief, and crushing guilt.</p>
      <p>'I'd gladly risk being blown up again if it meant that you walked away unharmed,' he told her as he hugged her tightly, hoping that she understood, on some level, that she was the most important mammal in his life and that she mattered more to him than even his own life.</p>
      <p>Nick had accepted that he was in love with Judy, but it wasn't until he had uttered these words that he understood that not only were they the absolute truth, but that the love he felt for her was so much deeper than he had believed.</p>
      <p>He would never stop loving her, and this realization was terrifying and so completely heart-wrenchingly bitter and devastating, that he actually felt a tear slip down his cheek, seeping into his fur where he hoped Judy wouldn't notice it.</p>
      <p>Pulling away, he gave her a gentle smile. 'We're both blaming ourselves for not being there for each other, and yes, you shouldn't have left me, but the one we should be blaming for everything is the perp who tried to blow us up. So let's blame him instead and be glad that his little plan failed and we won, which means bad guys zero, good guys one.'</p>
      <p>Judy gave him a watery smile and she nodded her assent.</p>
      <p>Lungs burning, his chest on fire and his shoulder being prodded with a hot poker, he tried to lay back without showing how much pain he was in, but Judy noticed anyway and helped him lie back against the pillow.</p>
      <p><strong>I'm going to look after you, and you are going to get better and we will get the ocelot,</strong> Judy wrote on the whiteboard after he had settled back, erasing the previous writing.</p>
      <p>Nick smirked at her optimistic prognosis for his recovery. 'I caught a glimpse of my chart, Carrots, I think you will probably have to catch the ocelot without me. Last time I checked, the ZPD didn't employ deaf mammals.'</p>
      <p>His words had the desired effect of making her angry and lighting a determined fire in her eyes that drown out the misery and guilt and this truly made him smile even as his heart clenched in regret at the thought of losing his job at the ZPD and of losing Judy, because it was inevitable that he would.</p>
      <p>Judy quickly erased her words and wrote upon the whiteboard again, her marker moving furiously.</p>
      <p><strong>You'll get your hearing back</strong>, she affirmed as she underlined the sentence several times over.</p>
      <p>Whatever reply he was going to make was interrupted by Judy's head swivelling towards the door. A beaver entered the room a moment later with a clipboard, a small rectangular white box, and a set of earphones in his paws.</p>
      <p>Walking to the bed, Judy looked as if she was going to move, but Nick found his paw reaching out and clasping hers. She settled back down and listened as the technician talked with her, while he gave Nick the clipboard, a detailed explanation of the test and instructions for him typed out on the sheet.</p>
      <p>Giving a nod of comprehension, the technician placed the earphones into his ears. The beaver then began adjusting the dials on the small rectangular box, looking at Nick every few moments, watching him to catch any signal Nick would give to indicate he had heard anything.</p>
      <p>Ten minutes later the beaver had left, taking his device with him and Nick felt exhausted.</p>
      <p>It wasn't a surprise that he couldn't hear anything, he had already known this, but to have it confirmed with a test that had included high pitched frequencies that only members of the canidae family could hear was a severe blow.</p>
      <p>The doctor entered his room a few minutes later with a nurse. The results confirmed that he was suffering from complete hearing loss. The doctor gave him some pamphlets and some material to read up on as well as the information that his hearing loss may not be permanent.</p>
      <p>This only echoed Judy's earlier sentiments, but he was not going to pin all of his hopes upon the faint chance that his hearing would return.</p>
      <p>He had learned long ago that hope was something that only fools clung to and Nick Wilde was many things, but he wasn't a fool.</p>
      <p>Judy let go of his paw and slid from the bed, talking with the doctor while the nurse fiddled with his IV, pushing something into it.</p>
      <p>The doctor placed his chart at the end of the bed and seemed to be trying to get Judy to leave, but she was having none of it.</p>
      <p>'Go home, Carrots,' he told her and Judy's eyes flashed with fire. 'Looks like I'm about to go night-night,' he said groggily. 'You can bring me back some decent food. The horror of hospital food...' he grimaced. 'Maybe something with blueberries,' he said as he felt his eyelids getting heavier by the second.</p>
      <p>She was saying something to the doctor who motioned for the nurse, both of them leaving the room before Judy's attention turned back to him, her mouth moving but he was unable to even guess what she was saying.</p>
      <p>No, that wasn't quite true.</p>
      <p>She was probably giving him a pep talk meant to make him feel better, to believe that his hearing was going to get better, and he was almost glad he couldn't' hear it.</p>
      <p>Sudden insight struck her as she palm slapped her forehead and reached up, grabbing the whiteboard from the bed.</p>
      <p>'Ding,' he said, his eyes open the very thinnest of cracks, 'time's up, Carrots. You'll have to save the speech for next time.' He frowned as a sudden thought struck him. 'Oh, and you are <em>not </em>looking after me,' he told her, not quite sure what she was thinking when she had written that little tidbit down, but he had a sneaking suspicion that he wasn't going to like it.</p>
      <p>Her eyes filled with determined fire as she started an impassioned speech or plea of some sort that he couldn't hear and he found himself smiling at how riled up she was. Drifting in a kind of haze he forced his eye open, glimpsing her frustrated expression. 'You know you love me,' he mused. 'Yes, Carrots, yes you do,' he finished, his eye sliding closed as he caught a flash of emotion - something deep- in her eyes that gave him hope that maybe, just maybe, she returned his feelings on some level.</p>
      <p>If he could feel anything anymore he would have snorted at his desperate, pathetic thoughts.</p>
      <p>He was wrong, he <em>was</em> a fool.</p>
      <p>Wishing and hoping that the sly, teasing banter they had always shared meant far more than it really did only proved how far he had fallen. But even this thought couldn't make him wish for the reality any less.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>
        <strong>Awwwhh poor Nick. Hope everyone enjoyed!</strong>
      </p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>As always, thank you to everyone for reading this fic!!<br/>A giant acknowledgement of my Beta Marie Allen for her talents, and I hope everyone enjoys this next chapter!! XD</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p>Idly twisting a small, round, metal tag between his fingers, the black and gold colours catching the light from the flickering flames that danced across the room from the fire that was lit within the ornate fireplace, a knock upon the door caused the big cat to pause the program he was watching on the television.</p>
      <p>"Enter," he said.</p>
      <p>"Sir?" the wolf said in greeting as he strode into the room.</p>
      <p>"Report," the big cat ordered as he flicked his attention to the grey Timber wolf dressed in a plain black suit with black shirt and tie that was understated; being neither expensive nor cheap and free of any embellishments or colour.</p>
      <p>"Officer Wilde is being released from the hospital in a few days," he said and the big cat did not bother turning his full attention to the wolf.</p>
      <p>"So I have heard," he said with little inflection in his voice.</p>
      <p>"Do you wish for me to eliminate him and Officer Hopps?" the Timber wolf asked.</p>
      <p>This question garnered the large cat's attention and caused him to stand up from where he had been lounging upon his sofa. "I think that at this moment, having any particular misfortune fall upon either mammal could illuminate a spotlight that has begun to wane," the big cat said thoughtfully. "The ZPD has released the crime scene in Happytown and there does not seem to be any movement in their case or any suspicion as to the true purpose of the building." He tucked the black and gold tag into his breast pocket. "I have procured another location to store the product before it is shipped. I am also in negotiations for a new dry-cleaning establishment so I believe that in a few weeks' time, operations will resume." He walked over to an intricately carved dark wood sideboard where a crystal decanter filled with a very old, very fine scotch with four crystal tumblers sat.</p>
      <p>Pouring half a glass of the expensive alcohol into one of the glasses, the large cat swirled the liquid around, watching in change colour and catch the firelight before he took an appreciative sip. "I will admit to being concerned about the fact that the two officers involved were Hopps and Wilde, but after hearing that Officer Wilde is not fit for duty and that Officer Hopps is not working the case, I find myself feeling better about the whole situation."</p>
      <p>The Timber wolf gave a nod of his head. "I have heard from certain sources that Officer Wilde has sustained permanent hearing loss," he offered.</p>
      <p>The big cat grinned. "Better and better."</p>
      <p>"Will there be anything else for the night, sir?" the Timber wolf asked.</p>
      <p>"Not tonight, Clawson."</p>
      <p>"Very good, sir. I will bid you a good evening then, Mr. Kahn."</p>
      <hr/>
      <p><strong>Judy</strong> looked at the boxes that were stacked in front of her. Granted, there were only three, but she had acquired more possessions than she had come to Zootopia with -more than could now fit into a suitcase- but not having much room in her apartment, she hadn't acquired very many new things.</p>
      <p>After another 'conversation' with Nick about her helping him with his injuries when he was released and having him flat out refuse to even entertain the thought of her dropping everything and basically becoming his nurse, she'd had no choice but to take matters into her own paws.</p>
      <p>Nick would need help, not only to tend to his physical injuries, but also to help him adjust to his hearing loss.</p>
      <p>Dr. Tuskson better explained the damage and suggested that as she had been in the explosion as well, to take a hearing test, which she passed quite easily; her hearing still above average.</p>
      <p>But while she had been tested, she realized that the headphones that had been used were completely soundproof -she hadn't even been able to hear her own voice- which was a horrible experience; her mouth and her brain feeling oddly disconnected from each other.</p>
      <p>She had realized that losing one's hearing would be hard, but she hadn't quite realized how terrifying and isolating it was to not be able to hear anything. The world was moving around her, but she felt like an observer, unable to participate in it because she couldn't tell if the mammal next to her was talking to her or if there was someone behind her, wanting her attention.</p>
      <p>It was just silence.</p>
      <p>No voices, no noise, no music, not even the sound of her own voice to break it.</p>
      <p>Finishing the test she had gone into the washroom and cried for a good ten minutes before she was able to pull herself together, her heart breaking at what Nick was going through. She knew it was possible that Nick's hearing would return, but she had spent too much time searching the internet looking for answers and what she had learned was not promising.</p>
      <p>But she refused to let that last shred of hope go.</p>
      <p>She was going to tenaciously cling to it because Nick refused to.</p>
      <p>Nick had done his own research -the new phone she had bought for him to replace the one that had been found at the scene of the explosion, smashed to pieces and barely recognizable- providing the information he had been looking for.</p>
      <p>To him, it was easier to accept that his hearing would never return. If he didn't hope he wouldn't be disappointed when his eardrums healed and his hearing failed to return. For Nick, it was as simple as that.</p>
      <p>And so it was left to her to convince him to not give up so easily and she wasn't going to be able to do that if he wouldn't let her help him.</p>
      <p>Drastic events, therefore, called for even more drastic measures.</p>
      <p>She had given her landlady her month's notice and moved out that very day.</p>
      <p>Giving up her apartment hadn't been a hard choice. She believed that the only way she would be able to convince Nick to let her stay was to move in. If she didn't have anywhere else to go, then he would have to accept her help.</p>
      <p>Taking Nick's keys from his work locker, she had recruited Finnick's help in transporting her belongings to Nick's apartment.</p>
      <p>She had known that Nick lived in a rough neighbourhood just outside of the Nocturnal District -she had dropped off soup once- but had never been let inside, until now.</p>
      <p>Finnick placed a couple grocery bags upon the floor beside her. "That's it, van's empty," he said before sending a sly glance her way. "You sure about this?"</p>
      <p>Looking at the room that spread out before her, she felt a sudden crushing weight descend upon her. Her ears fell and she couldn't help the exclamation of 'sweet cheese and crackers' that left her mouth at the state of the basement apartment.</p>
      <p>Only accessible by an old, rickety service elevator, it opened up into a large kitchen area, an arch separating the kitchen from another large room.</p>
      <p>Above her head and criss-crossing across the entire ceiling were pipes, both large and small, many of them leaking. Buckets and pots had been set up beneath the pipes to catch the dripping water, but many had overflowed during Nick's absence covering the stone floor with large puddles.</p>
      <p>Walking further into the kitchen, she looked at the shoddy countertop littered with more buckets and pots across the long wooden surface.</p>
      <p>The stove, with a kettle upon a burner, broke the countertop up into two sections while the fridge was positioned along the wall straight in front of her.</p>
      <p>Above the fridge was a thin, dirty rectangular window that let in a meager amount of light which only seemed to increase the overall depressing, derelict gloom of the apartment.</p>
      <p>"Oh, Nick," she whispered as her eyes continued to travel around the space before finally falling upon Finnick, who had followed her in.</p>
      <p>"It's pretty nice compared to his last place," Finnick observed as he strolled over to the fridge and opened the door, which illuminated the lone jar of pickles and a bottle of mustard. "Why is it always a jar of pickles and mustard?" Finnick wondered under his breath. "It isn't like Nick even likes pickles or mustard," he said with a disgusted shake of his head and slammed the door shut.</p>
      <p>"This is nicer?" Judy asked aghast to Finnick's previous observation.</p>
      <p>"Sure," Finnick answered with a shrug. "Used to live under that bridge he still hangs out at."</p>
      <p>Judy felt herself pale beneath her fur as she stared at Finnick in shock, remembering Nick's words about Judy failing and her future of living in a drawer under a bridge when she had first met him.</p>
      <p>Only Nick hadn't just pulled the idea out of thin air, he had actually <em>lived</em> it.</p>
      <p>At that moment, Judy realized that there was so much about Nick's past that she didn't know about.</p>
      <p>Looking to the left, through the archway that led to the open room, she saw a few Hawaiian shirts, a tie, and one pair of pants, which hung from a pipe that was serving as a clothes rack. A dresser and night table indicated that the room was possibly Nick's bedroom, but she didn't see a bed anywhere.</p>
      <p>The dresser caught and held her attention, the lower drawer pulled out with bedding falling out onto the floor.</p>
      <p>Nick had no bed: he slept in the dresser drawer.</p>
      <p>"I don't…" her voice trailed off, unable to express her confusion and distress over Nick's living conditions.</p>
      <p>It was true, this apartment was a step up from living under a bridge, but still, as a successful conman, Nick should have been able to rent something better. Ever her sparse closet-like apartment with its communal bathroom and no kitchen was better than the dank, dreary accommodations Nick was living in.</p>
      <p>"Hard to get any landlord to rent a place to a fox," Finnick said in answer to a question she had not voiced. "Why do you think I live in my van?" he asked her with a raised brow.</p>
      <p>"I just thought-" she began but cut herself off before she insulted him.</p>
      <p>"That I was cheap?" he asked, following her line of thought anyway.</p>
      <p>"I didn't-" she defended but Finnick's laughter silenced her.</p>
      <p>"I am," Finnick said with a grin and a shake of his head. "But also 'cause I got tired of only being able to get the shittiest places to live." Finnick shrugged. "Nick, he liked this place. He's had it for a long time and anything's better than living in that slum he managed to claw his way out of."</p>
      <p>Stunned, she found herself clutching her arms around her body as if she was suddenly cold, and perhaps she was; chilled to the bone at the knowledge of the life Nick had led prior to them meeting.</p>
      <p>Wanting to push Finnick for more details about Nick's past, she stopped herself as Finnick looked uncomfortable; like he had just revealed something he shouldn't have.</p>
      <p>"But he's a Zootopia officer now, why hasn't he moved?" she asked instead, changing the topic from the past back to the present.</p>
      <p>Finnick shrugged. "Nick bein' a cop ain't exactly winnin' him friends in this place," he replied. "So I dunno why he hasn't gotten outta here."</p>
      <p>Judy gave a slight nod of acknowledgement before she closed her eyes and collected her scattered thoughts. She felt a strong level of intimidation mixed with a large dollop of apprehension, but she wasn't about to be overwhelmed but the enormity of the task ahead of her, which had just become so much bigger.</p>
      <p>"You sure you got this?" Finnick asked skeptically.</p>
      <p>"Yeah, I've got this," she said more as a mantra to herself than a reply to the fox's question.</p>
      <p>Giving her a disbelieving shake of his head, Finnick walked towards the elevator, passing her belongings and the few bags of groceries she had bought.</p>
      <p>"Thank you," she said sincerely as the fennec fox entered the elevator.</p>
      <p>"Good luck, you're going to need it," he said jumping up and pulling down on the strap which closed the grating of the elevator.</p>
      <p>"I can handle it," she said with an amount of confidence she didn't feel.</p>
      <p>Finnick laughed. "You might want to check out the bathroom before you think that," he said with a grin before he pressed the button, the elevator rising with a loud whine of moving cables and machinery.</p>
      <p>Unable to ask Finnick what he meant, she had no choice but to search for the bathroom and hope there was one and that it wasn't a grimy mess of mildew, mold, and shed fur.</p>
      <p>Walking into what could be thought of as Nick's bedroom, she had to admit that it was tidier than she thought it would be. Whether this was because Nick picked up after himself or because of a noticeable lack of belongings she wasn't sure.</p>
      <p>Rounding the corner, Judy stared in shock at the bathroom.</p>
      <p>Though surprisingly clean but for the green towel that had been discarded upon the floor, she noticed a lack of door…or more precisely, a wall.</p>
      <p>There were only three walls.</p>
      <p>The toilet and sink were on one wall, the bathtub with a fish themed shower curtain that was only held up by three rings was on another and the towel holder was on the third.</p>
      <p>All was open and on display and suddenly Judy felt her stomach drop.</p>
      <p>Swallowing down her apprehension, she clapped her paws together determined not to be intimidated by the amount of work she had to accomplish in only three days.</p>
      <p>Taking some personal time off from the ZPD, she had been granted the leave with pay, and she was grateful for this.</p>
      <p>Glancing around Nick's apartment, she realized there were going to be more than a few expenses she hadn't counted on.</p>
      <p>Her only problem now was deciding where to even start.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p><strong>Nick</strong> stared at his Hawaiian shirt with a mixture of irritation and resignation.</p>
      <p>For the past week he had been looking forward to leaving the hospital, getting away from the constant flow of visitors and well-wishers, nurses, doctors, and prodding technicians.</p>
      <p>All he wanted was to go home to his crummy apartment, curl up in his drawer and go to sleep for a week or two and wake up and find that the nightmare he had lived and was currently living was nothing more than a horrible dream that he could put behind him.</p>
      <p>Moving his paw up, he attempted to button his shirt one-pawed. This was not something that was easy to do and he was bad at it, the material and button slipping through his pads. He let out a whimper of pain as he pulled at his injured shoulder; which had been tightly wrapped in thick, white bandages, his arm hanging in a sling.</p>
      <p>A light paw on his arm caused him to start with surprise, agony bursting to life across his chest like a living, breathing creature bent on tormenting him.</p>
      <p>Closing his eyes against the synapse-searing pain, he forced one eyelid open to snarl at whomever had snuck up on him, but he felt the words die in his throat as he stared into Judy's wide, violet eyes, filled with culpable guilt and worry.</p>
      <p>She was speaking to him in a flurry of words which he had to assume was an apology or perhaps her insistence that he wasn't ready to leave the hospital yet.</p>
      <p>He had convinced the doctor, who had agreed with great reluctance, that he was well enough to go home. In reality, there was not much the hospital staff could do for him at this point anyway.</p>
      <p>Nick had been given an instruction sheet on how best to treat his shoulder and change the bandages. There was nothing he could do for his ribs and his lung but to rest, and as for his hearing, well, there was little the doctor could do about it.</p>
      <p>He was deaf, plain and simple, and no amount of lying in the hospital was going to change that.</p>
      <p>Sure, there was slim chance that his hearing loss wasn't permanent, but he wasn't going to hold onto that false hope. This way, when his hearing didn't return, he wouldn't feel that soul crushing disappointment that would probably break him.</p>
      <p>The thought of never hearing Judy's voice again, listening to music, or even being able to hear his own voice was as terrifying as it was devastating.</p>
      <p>But that was how it was going to be, him, alone in his own head, and he accepted that.</p>
      <p>'I'm okay,' he said to Judy, trying to sound optimistic and not like his chest just had an inferno lit within it.</p>
      <p>Judy finally found her marker to go with the small whiteboard she had begun to carry with her after giving back the one Finnick had 'borrowed' from the hospital break room.</p>
      <p>They had tried texting back and forth after Judy had bought him a new phone, but he found it annoying to sit and stare at the black screen waiting for a text to pop up. It was oddly impersonal and cold and he found that he would rather watch as Judy hastily scribbled things upon her whiteboard.</p>
      <p><strong>I don't believe you</strong><em>, </em>she wrote.</p>
      <p>He gave her a lazy smile, his eyes slipping to half mast. 'Stop fussing, Carrots. I just want to get out of here and get some real food,' he said to her as he slowly turned and picked up a small plate with a wiggly red concoction that was pretending to be Jell-O, but which he was pretty sure was some awful kind of no-sugar-not-really-food substitute.</p>
      <p>'Wanna bite?' he offered.</p>
      <p>She looked at his offering with abhorrent distaste, wrinkled her cute little nose in disgust, and shook her head.</p>
      <p>'I thought not,' he said smoothly as he placed the dish back on the tray and tried not to let her see how badly his paw was shaking with the effort of not only standing, but moving around so much.</p>
      <p>He watched as she bit her lip with indecision before she finally gave a nod of reluctant assent.</p>
      <p>Walking up to him, she stood just that little bit too close, invading his personal space, and causing him to catch his breath.</p>
      <p>Reaching out, her paws hovered over his chest and he swore his heart skipped a beat.</p>
      <p>The room was suddenly too small as he could feel the heat from her body singing his fur. He wasn't sure what she was doing and he wasn't sure if he wanted her to stop or not.</p>
      <p>Pulling the two halves of his shirt together, she began to slowly button up his shirt and he found himself disappointed and relieved at the same time.</p>
      <p>Even though she was buttoning the shirt with swift efficiency, he found the action to be oddly intimate and he wished that he was able to see what emotion was playing across her face because her eyes were intently focused upon her task.</p>
      <p>When she had finished, she paused briefly before letting go of the cloth between her paws and stepped away, giving him a bright, chipper smile as she grabbed the small backpack that held his meagre belongings and he chastised himself for being such a lovelorn fool.</p>
      <p>He was beginning to read into things that weren't there and twisting Judy's actions into something he wished for from the bottom of his heart –no matter how wrong and hopeless it was to want it- but the reality was that Judy was helping him because she was his friend, his partner, and he was now a broken, wounded mammal that needed to be taken care of.</p>
      <p>Ears drooping slightly at this depressing thought, he found himself unaccountably annoyed and angry.</p>
      <p>About to snap something about being able to do things by himself, his words were left unsaid as Finnick walked into the room, a surly expression upon his face that didn't quite hide the mischievous twinkle in his eyes.</p>
      <p>Distrusting the fennec fox, his gaze sought out Judy's, looking for any sign that she was sharing in whatever trouble the diminutive fox was into and finding nothing in her face but for a slight nervousness, he turned his attention back to Finnick.</p>
      <p>'What kind of con have you got running that's put you in such a good mood?' he asked genuinely curious.</p>
      <p>Finnick just grinned, showing all of his sharp teeth but didn't say anything. Whether this was because the small fox didn't want to tell him with Judy standing right there or because Finnick just didn't want to have to write down his con on the whiteboard Judy was offering him, Nick wasn't sure; all he knew was that Finnick just waved off his question.</p>
      <p>Judy darted from the room and returned a moment later with a wheelchair.</p>
      <p>Nick looked at the wheelchair with askance and shook his head indicating that there was no way he was going to sit in the chair and have Judy wheel him out like an invalid, no matter the effort that it was taking him to keep standing, he still had a tiny shred of pride left.</p>
      <p>Judy glared at him and thumped her foot in frustration, a habit he thought of as adorable.</p>
      <p>Scribbling quickly on her whiteboard Judy wrote: <strong>You don't get to leave unless you ride in the wheelchair. Hospital policy.</strong></p>
      <p>Letting out a sigh, Nick shuffled forward and slowly sat down upon the vinyl seat. He would ride in the stupid wheelchair to get out of the hospital. As long as it was policy and not because Judy felt as if he was too pathetic to handle walking from the hospital on his own two feet.</p>
      <p>Relaxing into the uncomfortable seat, he tried not to admit that he probably wouldn't have made from the hospital under his own power. No matter how much willpower he had, as Judy wheeled him through corridor after corridor and down an elevator, he would have had no choice but to buckle beneath his body's own limitations.</p>
      <p>He was in a great deal of pain and had no energy. It was as if after a week in the hospital all of his strength had been sapped from his body leaving him nothing more than a shaking mass of fur, broken bones, and quivering, strained muscles.</p>
      <p>Finally arriving at the entrance, the glass and metal doors slid open revealing Finnick's van parked at the curb, in a no parking zone.</p>
      <p>He wasn't surprised, but at the same time, he was grateful that he would not have to walk very far.</p>
      <p>Judy glared at Finnick and must have lectured him about where Finnick had decided to park. The fennec fox was completely unapologetic and motioned to Nick, saying something before Judy's attention snapped to Nick.</p>
      <p>She studied him for a quick moment before she looked away, her expression contrite though still annoyed.</p>
      <p>Judy opened the passenger side door before walking back to Nick's side to help him out of the wheelchair and into the van's elevated seat.</p>
      <p>Judy looked at Nick and said something to Finnick, the small fox giving a nod of his head as he walked around to the back of the van and threw open the doors.</p>
      <p>Leaning more heavily upon Judy than he intended, he did not protest when his friends decided to put him in the back of the van, lying him down upon Finnick's bed.</p>
      <p>His legs hung over the side of the small mattress but he didn't care, pain was flowing across his body in thick waves of agony and he was having trouble catching his breath.</p>
      <p>Judy crawled in next to him and he felt her grasp his paw, giving it a squeeze. He returned the motion but did not open his eyes, keeping them firmly closed as he felt the engine vibrate to life before the van began to move.</p>
      <p>Nick worried about Finnick's driving, wondering how badly he was going to be thrown around, but soon realized that the fennec fox was driving like an elderly grandmother.</p>
      <p>Finally opening his eyes as the pain ebbed to a dull throb, he glanced at Judy's worried face.</p>
      <p>'If you keep making that face, it's going to stay that way,' he teased and hoped his voice didn't sound as pathetic as he suspected it probably did.</p>
      <p>Judy didn't smile, instead the worry lines in her forehead deepened, meaning that he hadn't convinced her that he was fine.</p>
      <p>A bump in the road caused him to gasp in pain as he clutched at his chest, his broken ribs protesting the movement.</p>
      <p>The remainder of the ride back to his apartment was accomplished at what must have been a snail-like pace due to how long it took to get to the very edge of Savannah Central, just outside of the Nocturnal District.</p>
      <p>Nick didn't really pay much attention to what was going on in the van, closing his eyes and pretending to sleep so that Judy wouldn't worry about him.</p>
      <p>When the van finally pulled to a stop and the rumble of the engine ceased, Nick felt utterly and completely exhausted from the ordeal.</p>
      <p>Judy's light touch on his good shoulder was apparently to wake him, but he had not slept. Instead, he had been very aware of every single bump, rut, and turn in the road, because no matter how slow Finnick had driven, Zootopia drivers were still Zootopia drivers and some of them were very, very bad.</p>
      <p>The van doors opened sending a near blinding stream of light into the relatively dim interior causing him to squint against the harshness of it.</p>
      <p>Gingerly exiting the van was an exercise in patience for everyone, himself included. His whole body was shaking with fatigue and pain by the time he set his feet down upon the broken pavement in the alley behind his building where the elevator to his basement apartment was located; right beside the dumpsters.</p>
      <p>Not wanting to subject Judy to his dingy, dank apartment, he thanked her as he tried to pull away, even though he was unsure if he would be able to walk to the elevator under his own power.</p>
      <p>Judy, however, did not take the hint and instead continued to cling to him.</p>
      <p>Realizing that getting Judy to leave his side was an exercise in futility, he accepted her help and could only be grateful for the fact that he would not have to listen to her gasp of horror when she entered his apartment, and he was in too much pain at the moment to really care what Judy thought of the dark hole he called home.</p>
      <p>Leaning heavily upon Judy, Finnick opened the doors of the elevator and they shuffled in. Finnick followed, jumping up and pulling the strap to close the two horizontal grates that were the doors.</p>
      <p>The elevator rattled to life and he felt them sinking into the earth, the light above their heads flickering before diming just as the elevator jerked to a halt.</p>
      <p>Catching his breath on a yelp of pain, he unclenched his paws and pried open his eyes as Finnick raised the grating and Nick discovered that there was something horribly wrong with his apartment.</p>
      <p>The pots and buckets that had littered his floor catching the leaks from the many pipes that criss-crossed overhead were nowhere to be found and there even appeared to be a decent amount of light entering the dim room as evidenced by a plant, possibly a fern, basking in a beam of sunlight.</p>
      <p>Judy had started to walk forward, but he had stood rooted to the spot causing her to push at him, sending a shot of agony tearing across his chest, but at the moment, he was too shocked to even notice.</p>
      <p>He walked slowly from the elevator, a feeling of impending doom rolling over him like a dark thunder cloud forewarning a terrible storm.</p>
      <p>'What happened to my apartment?' he asked, his eyes scanning the open room before him, not sure if his voice was even audible.</p>
      <p>His gaze fell upon Finnick who was wearing a shit-eating grin and Nick felt apprehension slide across his fur.</p>
      <p>Judy pulled away from him after she made sure he wasn't going to fall flat on his face and dug out her whiteboard and marker, which was quickly snatched away by Finnick.</p>
      <p>Chuckling to himself, Finnick quickly wrote down his words on the board before turning the board around.</p>
      <p>
        <strong>HAVE FUN WITH YOUR NEW ROOMIE!</strong>
      </p>
      <p>'You?' Nick asked hopefully.</p>
      <p>Finnick shook his head and motioned to Judy who looked at him and gave a bright, if slightly unsure smile as Nick's ears fell and his stomach dropped.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>
        <strong>Hehe I am so evil to poor Nick;)</strong>
      </p>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you to everyone who has given kudos and left a comment, I can't thank you guys enough!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Nick</strong> stared at Judy, his stomach having plummeted to his feet as his mind tried to process the words on the whiteboard.</p>
<p>Granted, he <em>understood</em> them, the concept was very simple: Judy was planning on moving in with him.</p>
<p>The only problem with this was….<em>everything</em>.</p>
<p>Being able to wake up with Judy in the same apartment every day…</p>
<p>It was like something out of a dream <em><strong>and</strong></em> his worst nightmare.</p>
<p>He wanted to be with the doe he loved more than anything, but… Judy didn't think of him that way. To her, he was just her partner, her best friend, and…her obligation.</p>
<p>Judy carried the guilt of the loss of his hearing upon her tiny shoulders and he didn't want to be that burden for her.</p>
<p>'No,' he said as he shook his head back and forth, his ears flattening against his skull in anger and annoyance.</p>
<p>Judy's ears fell and she looked at him in shock, an emotion that was painfully short-lived. A spark of defiance was lit in her violet eyes and she began arguing with him for a moment before she remembered that he couldn't hear what she was saying.</p>
<p>Ripping the whiteboard from Finnik's unresisting hands, she erased his words and furiously scribbled her own in its place.</p>
<p>
  <strong>I'm moving in</strong>
</p>
<p>'No, you aren't,' he growled, making sure to bare his canines and remind her that although she was no longer afraid of him, he was still a predator and she was still prey.</p>
<p>Judy's eyes narrowed.</p>
<p>
  <strong>Yes I am</strong>
</p>
<p>Nick blew out a huff of warm air through his nostrils as he tried to control his fraying temper and not give into the overwhelming urge to collapse upon the floor in an exhausted heap –an event that would make it near impossible to get Judy back out the door.</p>
<p>'Listen, I appreciate you wanting to make sure I'm okay,' he began trying to be reasonable when he felt the complete opposite of it, 'but I'll be fine,' he reassured her while shooting a glare at Finnick that should have incinerated him on the spot, but the normally hard-edged fennec fox was too busy gleefully watching the proceedings.</p>
<p>Judy shook her head back and forth.</p>
<p>Quickly scribbling something on the whiteboard, Nick waited, his mind coming up with every possible excuse he could to prevent Judy from staying with him, but it was all for nothing. Scrawled across the board were two short sentences, but they may as well have been the two final nails in his coffin.</p>
<p>
  <strong>I gave up my apartment. I have nowhere else to go</strong>
</p>
<p>Ears drooping in response, he stared at the black words as if somehow he could form them into different ones, but no matter how hard he read and re-read them, they stubbornly stayed the same.</p>
<p>There was nothing he could do. He couldn't kick her out, where would she go? Live in the van with Finnick? His mind painted a picture that had him unintentionally growling in his throat with sudden jealousy.</p>
<p>There was no one else for her to move in with at this very moment and nowhere else she could stay.</p>
<p>He knew that Judy would have planned this -would have known that this was the only way that she could make any and all arguments he would attempt to make completely and totally irrelevant- but it didn't make its acceptance any easier.</p>
<p>Closing his eyes in bitter resignation, he wondered what he had done, what sins he had committed, that would have spawned such karmic justice.</p>
<p>It was bad enough that he had fallen in love with –of all things- a bunny.</p>
<p>He knew that he had no choice but to hide his feelings for Judy's sake as well as his own as he didn't want to see the disgust fill her eyes at the realization of what he felt for her. If she found out, he would lose her and this thought was enough to break him more than the possibility of never being able to hear again ever could.</p>
<p>'Skunk-butt rug,' he whispered out loud as he opened his eyes.</p>
<p>Judy and Finnick shared a look of puzzlement before turning their attention back to him, but he was too preoccupied with thoughts of Grandmama sitting somewhere in the afterlife, smiling gleefully at his misfortune.</p>
<p>Judy mouthed his name, he could read this much from her lips, her confusion turning to quick concern as she reached up to touch his forehead.</p>
<p>Apparently she decided to take his temperature as his words had caused her to believe he was delirious with fever.</p>
<p>Maybe he was.</p>
<p>Judy's paw upon his fur sent a rush of tingling warmth through him and he could almost hear the high-pitched sound of Grandmama's laughter echoing in his head.</p>
<p>Deciding that this all had to be some kind of dream and not really sure if he wanted to wake up, he closed his eyes, enjoying the feel of her paw and accidently slipping forward.</p>
<p>He felt so tired all of a sudden. His head throbbed painfully right behind his eyes, his chest and shoulder were on fire and his body felt so very heavy. Maybe he'd just rest for a minute, clear his head, and then think of some way to prevent Judy from moving in with him, but right now, this felt like too difficult a task to accomplish.</p>
<p>He had the impression of movement, though he wasn't sure if he was moving or if the ground was. Either way, it didn't really seem too important at the mo-</p>
<p>The second he had this thought, brutal pain that sprouted teeth and claws tore, slashed, and ripped into him clearing away the momentary fog that had begun to envelope him the blissful numbness of unconsciousness.</p>
<p>Eyes flashing open, he was greeted by the sight of Judy, her face much too close to his own, the familiar sight of remorse mixed in with worry etched into her beautiful features as she tried to half drag, half pull his sorry ass towards a bed.</p>
<p>Finnick was yelling at him, at least, that was his general impression judging by the amount of teeth that were being bared as well as the fierce scowl the diminutive fox was giving him as he spoke.</p>
<p>Judy snapped something at Finnick before she turned her attention back to him, her annoyance, anger, and guilt palpable as he remembered how to use his legs and allowed her to lead him to a bed where he gingerly sat down on the edge of it.</p>
<p>A fleeting thought skittered through his mind that he should learn to read lips, and mentally put it on his list of things to do when his head and body didn't ache so much.</p>
<p>Though truthfully, he was not at all sorry he couldn't decipher the words that poured from her mouth. They would no doubt be full of nothing but apologies and self-recrimination instead of placing the blame for his present condition firmly where it belonged: on him for pushing himself too hard which caused him to pass out, if only for a moment.</p>
<p>'I'm fine,' he murmured as Judy and Finnick both helped him to lie back and it took all of his willpower to swallow down the gasp of agony that threatened to escape from between his lips.</p>
<p>Finally settled, the sheet pulled up to his throat, he felt his muscles begin to relax as the pain began to lessen from pretty damn unbearable to just unbearable.</p>
<p>
  <strong>YOU'RE AN IDIOT</strong>
</p>
<p>The whiteboard had again made it into Finnick's paws and Nick couldn't help but smile. 'Awhh, it's like you're worried about me or something,' he mused in a strained, gasping breath.</p>
<p>Finnick gave him a brief, solemn look that required no words to convey to him that his friend was indeed worried about him before Finnick's face screwed up in disgust. He erased his previous words and wrote:</p>
<p>
  <strong>NOT WORRIED. YOU'RE JUST NOT ALLOWED TO DIE YET. YOU STILL OWE ME MONEY.</strong>
</p>
<p>Nick snorted as Finnick smirked. They both knew that he didn't owe Finnick any money, not anymore.</p>
<p>Their friendship returned to its original setting of faux-hostility, he gave a nod of understanding before Finnick leapt down from the bed.</p>
<p>A glass of water and two white pills suddenly appeared before him. 'I don't have a fever, do I?' he asked because he suddenly couldn't tell. As before, Judy was much too close to him, sitting upon the bed, causing the skin beneath his fur to become overly warm.</p>
<p>Judy shook her head and he breathed out a sigh of relief. 'Least I don't have to go back to the…hospital…' his words trailed off as a few things his abused brain was trying to make him aware of finally clicked into place.</p>
<p>Paw held out to take the glass of water and pain medication, his head swivelled around to observe the mound of blankets he was snuggled into. His gaze flicked to the drawer where he normally slept -fitted with one of Finnick's old lumpy mattresses. The drawer was pushed into the dresser, his mattress, bedding, and pillow missing.</p>
<p>Switching his attention back to the sheets that enveloped him, he noted that they were navy blue, the comforter a lighter blue with carrots strewn across it. The mattress beneath him was plush and soft.</p>
<p>He was sleeping on a bed; a real bed with a mattress and a headboard and <em>everything</em>.</p>
<p>But…he was in his room. His <em>bedroom</em>.</p>
<p>Slowly turning his head back to Judy, he stupidly said, 'My bed.'</p>
<p>Judy blushed, another flurry of unknown words passing her lips before she brought herself up short as she scrambled across the bed towards Finnick and grabbed the whiteboard from him.</p>
<p>
  <strong>You can't curl up, you need to lay flat or propped up. Dr's orders</strong>
</p>
<p>He stifled a groan, leaning back against the pillows at his back.</p>
<p>Pillows.</p>
<p>As in plural.</p>
<p>As in more than one.</p>
<p>And they matched the bed along with two decorative pillows that were of no real use, sitting on top of the dresser.</p>
<p>His ears drooped at the realization that although he had managed to skip a few levels, he had ended up on the seventh level of domestic hell.</p>
<p>While he had been in the hospital Judy had moved in with him -without his permission- and made his crappy, piece-of-shit apartment habitable and comfortable and filled it with her sweet blueberry scent and he felt like he was suddenly losing a tiny part of himself.</p>
<p>Quietly taking the glass of water, he endured the sharp bite of painful agony as he shifted enough so that he could swallow down the pills and take a drink of water to wash everything down. Giving the glass back to Judy, he leaned back and closed his eyes, resisting the urge to curl up into a ball of misery, because he wasn't allowed.</p>
<p>A soft paw was paced upon his uninjured shoulder and he ignored it, pretending to sleep as his thoughts and emotions warred within him.</p>
<p>Stupidly, he felt close to tears.</p>
<p>He knew he was being ridiculous, but he couldn't seem to be able to help it.</p>
<p>Judy had barrelled into his life, his heart, and now his apartment and he was pretty sure his heart was breaking –just a little bit- at the daunting, near impossible task of having to hide his feelings from her-</p>
<p>-because he <em>wanted</em> this.</p>
<p>He wanted the bed with the too many pillows, and the potted plant that Judy would attempt to keep alive, and the not being able to find any of his stuff because Judy had cleaned up, and the waking up to Judy being with him each and every single night and every single day with her bright violet eyes, her sweet scent, and her infectious smile.</p>
<p>His heart hurt at the thought of it and he wanted her to leave; to put everything back, get rid of the bed, give him his dresser drawer, the leaky pipes and the pots and pans littering the floor, because dangling this temptation before him was cruel.</p>
<p>And yet…</p>
<p>Did he really want her to leave?</p>
<p>Was it better for him if she left or if she stayed?</p>
<p>Which was the greater torment?</p>
<p>He wanted her to be by her side, so why not let her? It would be near impossible to hide his feelings from her, but what if he could?</p>
<p>Judy wouldn't be off of work forever, something he knew for certain because he had encouraged her to go back to work as soon as possible. He couldn't stand the thought of seeing her every single day with the heavy shadow of guilt that hung around her small frame.</p>
<p>But after she returned to duty, if she didn't live with him, how often would he see her?</p>
<p>Would she come to his place every day after work? Maybe for the first little while, but when her workload became too heavy with open cases, how many times would they hang out then?</p>
<p>Once a week?</p>
<p>Once a month?</p>
<p>Once every few months?</p>
<p>He knew Judy was hanging onto some false expectation that he would recover his hearing and return as her partner, but he didn't want to latch onto that thin thread of hope because it would be crushing when it didn't happen and he had to be discharged from the ZPD.</p>
<p>Judy would be on leave for another two weeks. He was in pain and bedridden. He was positive he could act normally for two weeks. And after…?</p>
<p>It would be a kindness to himself to tell her to move out-</p>
<p>The paw that had been resting on his shoulder, Judy's paw, gave his shoulder a slight squeeze of comfort before the warmth vanished and he felt Judy slide from the bed.</p>
<p>He could lose her if she stayed, he could lose her if she left.</p>
<p>Nick gave a brief snort of derision and allowed a mocking smile to grace his lips. Even though Judy had changed him, he was ever the selfish, self-serving creature. He wanted her to stay because having her by his side now was worth the risk of losing her later.</p>
<p>Finding that his mind was becoming cloaked in haze and his limbs had become deadened weights attached to his torso, a brief flicker of a dark tempting consideration -more a desire than an actual coherent thought- slithered unopposed through the dense fog of his brain.</p>
<p>
  <em>What if…? Wouldn't it be better…</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>To… try…to</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Make…</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Her….</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Mine.</em>
</p>
<hr/>
<p><strong>Judy</strong> gave Nick's shoulder a squeeze and left him, her heart feeling heavy and full of too much worry mixed with near crushing culpability.</p>
<p>Finnick followed her as she slowly made her way from Nick's bedroom to the kitchen where she wandered over to the fridge, opened it, and asked Finnick if he wanted a drink.</p>
<p>The fennec fox agreed to stay for a few minutes and she handed him a pop.</p>
<p>Leaping up onto one of the folding chairs -there were two- he placed the can down on the cheap plastic folding table she had bought with the two chairs and the bed. She had wanted to buy a couch, but she wasn't able to afford it, at least not yet.</p>
<p>Taking the seat opposite the diminutive fox, she clasped her paws together, a frown upon her face.</p>
<p>"Did you…" Judy's voice trailed off. She and Finnick had never really been close and it felt almost wrong to talk about Nick behind his back, but she and Finnick had a mutual investment in Nick's well-being and so she continued. "I'm worried about him."</p>
<p>Judy had expected to have Nick angry about the fact that she had moved in and had broadsided him with the knowledge of it only after it was all said and done. And he <em>had</em> been upset and he had tried to change her mind and refused to let her stay until she had pointed out that she had nowhere else to go. But then, after they had gotten Nick up on the bed, he had seemed…upset- almost sad and dejected and she didn't know why.</p>
<p>When he had closed his eyes after she had given him his medicine, she had gotten the impression that he wanted her to leave him alone.</p>
<p>Finnick took a sip of his pop and stared at it, as if it was incredibly interesting before he grunted in agreement.</p>
<p>"Was I wrong?" she asked him. "Was it wrong of me to move in here without letting Nick know or have a say in it? I only wanted to help him and I know that I couldn't just leave him here all by himself and…and I don't want him to hate me," she finally finished feeling tears welling up in her eyes.</p>
<p>Finnick gave a huff of annoyance, rolled his eyes, and finally gave her a look that said: '<em>I probably shouldn't be talking with you about Nick behind his back and I don't do this fluffy emotional heart to heart shit, but because it's for Nick, I'll do it…very grudgingly…and if you ever tell him that we talked, I will deny it until my last breath. Oh….and if you cry, I will leave, immediately.</em>'</p>
<p>Taking a shaking breath, Judy blinked back her tears and waited for Finnick to speak.</p>
<p>He took his time, seeming to sort out in his head what he wanted to say. Finally, after taking another drink of pop, he began, "Nick's a pretty private guy. You remember what this place looked like before, it's not really set up for him to be social. I can count on one paw the number of times I've been in this apartment, and twice was when I was with you. Sure, Nick's friendly and charming and claims to know everyone, but he doesn't let anyone in. You're it, Bunny Cop. You're the only one I've ever seen Nick get this close to. Nick hates being vulnerable and letting his guard down. This place, it was the only place he could do that, and now you're here."</p>
<p>Judy stared down at her paws. "But-" she began, about to defend her actions, only Finnick interrupted her, causing her gaze to snap to his.</p>
<p>"Listen. You did what you had to do. Last thing I want is that moron over there to get an infection and wind up back in the hospital or dead. And I ain't playing nursemaid so you are it. You're the one that's gotta do this for him because he was never going to ask anyone for help. That stubborn pain-in-my-tail would just dig his paws in and be determined to do it all himself." Finnick shook his head. "I get it, but thing is, sometimes he can't do everything. So no matter the shit or the flack he gives you, you hold your head up, stare him down, and tell him to shove whatever lame-ass argument he's going to give you."</p>
<p>Judy took a deep breath and nodded, the flame of determination that had been briefly quenched roaring back to life again. "Okay," she said with a nod.</p>
<p>Finnick returned her gesture. "He'll come around," he reassured her as he finished off his pop and slid from the chair. "I'm outta here. Good luck. You're gonna need it with that stupid red fox."</p>
<p>"You don't want to stay until he wakes up?" she asked as she slid from her chair.</p>
<p>"Nope," he said shaking his head. "Three's a crowd, Bunny Cop," he said with a smirk and a wink and Judy felt herself staring at him blankly as his words slowly sank in, blushing at the insinuation, but quickly discounting them as her reading too much into them.</p>
<p>Finnick held his shades in his paws, about to put them over his eyes and she sensed that his gruff, apathetic mask was about to be slipped back into place. Both foxes hid their true selves behind the false facades they showed the world. Finnick wore the visage of the tough-as-nails fox who was full of bravado, while Nick was the care-for-nothing, slick, friendly charmer.</p>
<p>It saddened her to know that both foxes felt the need for the pretense, but knew she could only be thankful that they had allowed her to see beneath the masks.</p>
<p>"Finnick?" she asked softly, the fennec fox pausing before slipping the glasses upon his muzzle. "What if-" she felt unable to meet his sharp, brown gaze, choosing instead to stare at her feet. "-Nick never gets his hearing back?" she asked him, finally gathering her courage to look Finnick in the eyes, knowing that if Nick lost his hearing permanently that it would be her fault.</p>
<p>Finnick's semi-formed mask cracked for a brief moment, allowing the fox's worry to leak through before smoothing out again. "Nick's a fox. We adapt, it's what we do. If he doesn't get his hearing back, he'll figure things out."</p>
<p>The fennec fox placed his shades over his eyes and Judy knew that the conversation was over, but Finnick's words didn't reassure her one bit.</p>
<p>Striding into the elevator, Finnick gave a curt nod of his head, an indication Judy took to mean that even though he was leaving, he had her back.</p>
<p>Letting out a breath as the doors slid closed she looked towards Nick's bedroom unable to rid herself of the sudden gloom that hung over her like a dark cloud. After voicing her fears to Finnick, she was unable to banish the flow of thoughts that invaded her mind as she actually allowed herself to consider the very real possibility that Nick was permanently deaf.</p>
<p>She didn't doubt Finnick's words, felt that he was right in his judgment of Nick's character and his ability to take everything that life threw his way in stride, but…</p>
<p>Nick would be discharged from the ZPD and he would lose everything he had worked so hard for, and…and she would lose him as a partner.</p>
<p>It was selfish of her to make Nick's injury about her, but the thought of losing Nick as a partner caused her heart to twist so painfully in her chest that she nearly lost her breath. She honestly couldn't imagine anyone being able to replace Nick and the thought of going back to work and having to partner up with someone else was something she was dreading with every ounce of her being.</p>
<p>She loved the mammals that she worked with, thought they were all good cops, but none of them were Nick.</p>
<p>Nick by her side, that's how she wanted it, that's how it was supposed to be. Their career as partners was not supposed to end like this, but…it could have ended in a much more final and heart-wrenching way.</p>
<p>Discharged was better than dead, she had to remember that.</p>
<hr/>
<p><strong>Nick</strong> opened his eyes to the darkness that cloaked his room; the pain that still radiated through his body causing him to wake.</p>
<p>His muscles were stiff and he wanted to move, but he felt oddly comfortable at the same time. There was something warm and heavy tucked into his injured side. Reaching over, believing he was going to feel an extra blanket laid out so that he could cover himself if he got cold, his paw brushed against soft fur that moved slightly.</p>
<p>Nick slowly lifted his paw from the top of Judy's head, which was buried into him, and he couldn't quite understand why she was there until he remembered the events of that day and he asked himself, <em>Were else would she be</em>? There was no other bed in his room and the one he lay upon was double the size of the bed in Judy's apartment. He had no couch or even a comfortable chair to curl up in. He wondered where his old mattress had gone, but even if it was sitting in a corner somewhere he wouldn't have allowed her to sleep on it.</p>
<p>Placing his paw upon her shoulder, he closed his eyes as he pulled her a little more securely into his side, not caring how much it hurt him performing this movement. He could almost imagine Grandmama's laughter in his head as he closed his eyes and went back to sleep, determined to put any thought of being anything more than Judy's friend from his mind, but for tonight…tonight he could dream that she was his.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Awwwhhh fluffy goodness XD</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Good evening everyone, new chappie up!<br/>Thank you to everyone who has read, commented and left kuddos, I greatly appreciate it!! XD</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p><strong>Judy</strong> stared at the small, black and gold, circular dry-cleaning tag; twisting it this way and that. She studied it as it rested within the clear, plastic evidence bag hoping for answers but receiving none.</p>
      <p>"Officer Hopps," the deep, rich baritone of Chief Bogo's voice dragged her from her thoughts and caused her to jump slightly in her chair, she quickly hid the evidence bag beneath a pile of papers before turning to face her boss.</p>
      <p>"H-hey, Chief," she stammered slightly as she straightened her posture and tried to look as if she was working as opposed to staring blankly at the dry-cleaning tag for over an hour when she had cases piled up on her desk that needed to be filed.</p>
      <p>"Are you sure you should be here?" Chief Bogo asked gently, the concern in his voice touching.</p>
      <p>Judy looked away from the cape buffalo's probing gaze, gathering herself for a moment, before looking back and giving him a large smile full of self-confidence and a determination that she didn't quite feel. "Yes, Sir I am!" she replied brightly, hoping her boss believed the lie as much as she was trying to.</p>
      <p>It was her first day back on the job and the truth was that she couldn't seem to concentrate. She wasn't ready to be here, but she needed to be; for more than a few reasons.</p>
      <p>She had to constantly remind herself that Nick was going to be fine without her. His injuries were healing and they would continue to heal, but it would take<em> time</em>.</p>
      <p>The stitches in his shoulder and his side had dissolved, leaving grisly scars that were still sore and red. His breathing was better, but still strained due to his broken ribs, which would take a couple more months to heal.</p>
      <p>She was worried about him walking around their apartment and getting in and out of bed, but Nick had insisted he would be fine without her and had practically pushed her out the door this morning.</p>
      <p>Judy would have been hurt by this except for two things. The first being her need to get back to work to find out who had tried to kill them, the second was to get away from the strange undercurrents of <em>something</em> that had begun to swirl around between them.</p>
      <p>She couldn't even explain what it was or when it had begun, but somewhere along the course of the past two weeks a peculiar, heavy tension had permeated their interactions.</p>
      <p>During the first week, Nick had been sore, cranky, and itchy. Very itchy.</p>
      <p>It had taken the threat of removing his TV privileges and duct-taping mittens to his paws that had finally convinced him to exhibit some self-control to leave his stitches alone.</p>
      <p>There had been other moments of struggle, like trying to let her help him have a bath, which he flat-out refused. No matter how much she insisted, he had become angry and defensive, so she had let it go. He had allowed her to change the dressing on his wounds and fuss over blankets, pillows, food, and his comfort, but she had soon noticed a certain intensity to his gaze along with an angry kind of…guilt or sadness that she could not interpret or understand.</p>
      <p>She had thought about asking him about it, but she wasn't sure what exactly her question would be. He hadn't said anything or acted in a certain way that would have given her the question to ask, and that was the problem. She wasn't even sure if what she was noticing was real or if she was just imagining it; which was probably the most frustrating aspect of all.</p>
      <p>"Hopps," Chief Bogo said in a disapproving voice, his voice dragging her back to the present again. He was holding out his hoof and she stared at it a moment before she understood.</p>
      <p>She let out a huff of air and removed the evidence bag from its impromptu hiding place, reluctantly giving it to him.</p>
      <p>"How is Officer Wilde doing?" Chief Bogo asked with genuine concern.</p>
      <p>"He's healing," Judy answered, looking down at her paws before looking back up at her boss.</p>
      <p>"I know that look," he offered softly as he moved a step closer. "You have to stop blaming yourself for what happened to Wilde."</p>
      <p>"But it <em>is</em> my fault," Judy answered softly.</p>
      <p>"Hopps, you know that's not true. You couldn't have known that the building was rigged to explode. You couldn't have known that the suspect you were chasing was involved in things much bigger than we could have ever expected. But staring at this tag will not change things and it won't answer the questions that we all have. I know you want to work the case, and I know you think you are ready, but you aren't."</p>
      <p>"Chief!" Judy protested, knowing that she had agreed to light administrative duty, but she had thought that she would at least be able to look through the evidence and work the case from her desk.</p>
      <p>"Hopps, you aren't the only cop in this precinct. We have our best officers working on this case. We will find who did this and we will figure out what is going on. We have survived three weeks without you, I am sure we can make it another week."</p>
      <p>Judy had the grace to blush at that. "That's not… I know, Chief. I know. I just…feel like I need to be doing something, but I can't…"</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo rested his free hoof upon her shoulder, bending down so that he could look her in the eyes. "You and Officer Wilde nearly lost your lives. I'm still amazed that you both managed to survive. It's understandable that you want to figure out who did this and why, but I can tell that you are still worried about Wilde and that's admirable and expected. But please, for this week, I am asking you to slowly adjust to being back and when I find you a new partner, then you can begin to work the case again."</p>
      <p>Judy sat up straighter. "Chief, Nick is my partner, I don't need a new one."</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo blew a huff of air from his nostrils and looked away.</p>
      <p>"Chief," Judy pleaded not wanting to hear him tell her that Nick wouldn't be back because running around in the back of her mind was this very real fear and she couldn't confront this, not right now. "Nick will be back."</p>
      <p>"Judy," he began gently, seemed to change his mind about what he was going to say and instead said, "It's only until he gets back. You need a partner. Someone who can have your back and help you."</p>
      <p>Judy felt herself give and involuntary flinch, as if she had been struck. She knew that Chief Bogo had not meant his remark as any slight against her and her failure to look out for Nick's safety, but she felt it all the same.</p>
      <p>Glancing into the earnest gaze of the water buffalo, she took in a deep breath and nodded her reluctant agreement.</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo gave her shoulder a quick squeeze as he straightened and turned, leaving her alone with her thoughts and a pile of reports that would not transcribe themselves.</p>
      <p>Sighing inwardly, she applied herself to the task of working her way through the tedious monotony of the paperwork and tried to keep her mind off wondering about Nick and how he was doing.</p>
      <p>Checking her phone for what felt like the hundredth time, she confirmed that there were no texts from Nick.</p>
      <p>Though the precinct was bustling and she usually gloried in the satisfaction of a report completed and a case closed, she found that she missed Nick more than she thought she should. It was true that there had been days when the fox had called in sick and she had been by herself, siting at her desk exactly as she was now, but she had always known that Nick was going to be there again. Now, because of this uncertainty, she felt oddly alone and more vulnerable than she had ever felt, and this was a sensation so foreign to her, it was frightening.</p>
      <p>This sudden realization startled her and she found herself needing to take a moment to center herself. She had no doubt that Nick would have laughed at her for her unusual reaction to 'feelings,' if he had been there and known her thoughts.</p>
      <p>Shaking her head, she reminded herself that she needed to focus on her task and convince Chief Bogo to let her work on the case much sooner than his prescribed and mandatory week of light duty.</p>
      <p>Her phone suddenly buzzed and she practically launched herself at it. Clutching the phone in her hand, she felt her shoulders droop when she saw that it was her parents calling.</p>
      <p>Looking around before she answered, she hit the talk button. "Mom," she said as her mom's face appeared on the screen, her father in the background.</p>
      <p>"Hello, dear," her mother said with forced joviality.</p>
      <p>"Hey there, Jude the Dude," her father piped in.</p>
      <p>"How's your first day back?" her mother asked, her voice pitching with deep concern.</p>
      <p>Judy plastered her own fake smile upon her face before she found she couldn't keep up the pretense. "It's fine," she answered. "But… I'm worried about Nick."</p>
      <p>"I'm sure the fox will be fine," her father said, brushing off her concerns.</p>
      <p>She had always been a little on the defensive side when it had come to Nick and his being a fox. She knew that her father and mother's attitudes about foxes had changed not only because of their partnership with Gideon Grey but also because they had gotten to know Nick a little. However, she had the distinct impression that her parents (especially her father) were not overly thrilled with how close she and Nick were.</p>
      <p>They hadn't said anything specifically to give her this impression and they had expressed very real distress over Nick's injuries when they had visited him in the hospital after they had found out about the explosion. They were very thankful, of course, that they were both okay, but she had noticed an awkward stiltedness that bordered upon distrust emanating from her parents when they had stood beside his hospital bed.</p>
      <p>Sensing this and not wanting to both fight with her parents as well as defend her actions, she had not told her parents that she had given up her apartment and moved in with Nick.</p>
      <p>She knew that she could not avoid telling them forever, but because she felt as if she was doing something wrong in her parent's eyes, she was going to keep them in ignorance of it for as long as she possibly could.</p>
      <p>Looking at her mother and father's trusting faces, she felt the inevitable guilt rise within her, but she stomped it down. She wasn't doing anything <em>wrong</em>. Nick was still her partner and more importantly, her best friend. Sure, she was a bunny and he was a fox, but so what?</p>
      <p>At that moment, she almost felt tempted to tell them. She had a warped kind of curiosity to see how they would react. Would they yell or just give her that disappointed look that wrung her heart? Would they come all the way to Zootopia to drag her back to Bunny Burrow? They had threatened as much after they had arrived at the hospital, sick with worry that she had made light of her injuries.</p>
      <p>Seeing her with only a bandaged cheek had gone a long way to reassuring them that she was fine. Nick's injuries, on the other hand, had given them no comfort or reassurance and it had taken all her persuasive skills to convince them not to storm into the ZPD demanding Chief Bogo reassign her to parking duty.</p>
      <p>"Your father's right, dear," her mother agreed, dragging Judy from her morose thoughts. "I am sure Nick will be just fine."</p>
      <p>"Foxes are very resilient," her father said, bringing his face close to the screen, "almost like cockroaches really," he murmured.</p>
      <p>"Stu!" her mother protested in shock.</p>
      <p>"Well it's true," her father defended. "Foxes wriggle out of all sorts of situations. Manage to get right back up, good as new."</p>
      <p>"Your father isn't wrong," her mother finally agreed.</p>
      <p>"Mom, Dad," Judy began holding on tightly to her temper before a creeping melancholy took over. "I've got to go," she said not wanting to talk with them anymore.</p>
      <p>"Oh, okay," her mother said softly, seeming to understand that they had said something to upset her. Her father on the other hand was blissfully unaware that there was anything amiss.</p>
      <p>"That's right," her father offered chipperly. "Those reports aren't going to file themselves."</p>
      <p>"No, they won't," she agreed flatly, knowing that her parents weren't exactly disappointed that she had been relegated to light desk duty for the next week, possibly longer depending on who her new partner was going to be. "I'll talk to you guys later," she said ending their video chat and feeling despondent.</p>
      <p>Placing her phone back down on her desk, she dragged her hands down her face, took a deep breath, and tried to resume her previous activity before she had been interrupted.</p>
      <p>Unfortunately, what little concentration she had had before her disruptive phone call had been shattered and she was unable to keep her attention upon her task.</p>
      <p>Sliding from her chair in frustration, she paced back and forth, taking a deep breath. "Come on, Judy," she murmured to herself. "Focus. Stop thinking about Nick and get to work." Finding that this was not at all helpful, she strode from her cubicle towards Clawhauser's desk, intent on a few minutes of inanity and hopefully a doughnut or two.</p>
      <p>The cheetah had a stash and if there was ever a day that she needed some fluff talk and processed sugar, this was it.</p>
      <p>Rounding the corner, a blur of blue, black, and dark grey collided with her, causing her to stumble back, her arms cartwheeling madly in an attempt at regaining her balance.</p>
      <p>A paw lashed out, grabbing her wrist and hauling her upright.</p>
      <p>Judy found herself staring wide-eyed into a pair of light grey eyes set into the dark-grey furred face of a bunny wearing a black bicycle helmet, blue polo shirt inscribed with a carrier name, and black riding shorts.</p>
      <p>"I am so sorry," the bunny said as he made sure she had her balance before taking a quick step back as he let go of her wrist. "Are you okay?"</p>
      <p>Feeling a little dazed, Judy mutely nodded her assurance that she had sustained no lasting harm.</p>
      <p>The bunny rubbed his neck as he gave her an embarrassed look. "I have been wanting to meet you since I saw you on the TV, after the NightHowler thing. But this is so not the way I thought I would meet Judy Hopps, the hero of Zootopia."</p>
      <p>Judy felt her cheeks warm under the bright warm gaze and the shy smile that crossed his face.</p>
      <p>"I…I'm not a hero," she demurred.</p>
      <p>"Oooooooo! Just look at you two," the voice of Clawhauser said over her shoulder as he squealed in delight. "It's like watching a Meet Cute right in front of me. Or would two bunnies hitting it off be a Meet Cute Cute?"</p>
      <p>Rounding on Clawhauser, she sent him a look that should have scared the spots right off the cheetah. Unfortunately, her death glare was completely wasted on the jovial cat and she had no choice but to turn her attention back to the bunny that stood in front of her.</p>
      <p>"Don't mind him," Judy said with a wave of her paw. "He's obviously suffering a sugar-induced hallucination," she bit out chipperly through clenched teeth. "I don't think…I haven't seen you…Are you new?" she wondered as she took in the brown messenger bag and gathered that he was a bike courier before she realized that her words sounded like a bad pick-up line, as evidenced by another one of Clawhauser's squeals.</p>
      <p>The bunny chuckled. "Yeah. Started last week. Took over from Wally."</p>
      <p>Judy didn't want to seem rude and she liked to think that she was aware of who came in and out of the department delivering their mail and other important documents, but she honestly couldn't remember who Wally was.</p>
      <p>"Otter. Talked really fast. Liked specialty coffees," the bunny said, and she blushed that he had correctly interpreted her blank look of incomprehension.</p>
      <p>"Right," she said with a nod, vaguely remembering the otter who had blown in and out of Precinct One and only taking the time to ever talk for a fleeting moment to Clawhauser before he was off again.</p>
      <p>"Frederick White. Freddy," the bunny said as he stuck out his paw. "Only my mom calls me Frederick; usually when I've done something wrong," he said with a charming smile.</p>
      <p>"Judy Hopps. But you already knew that," she said awkwardly as she gave his paw a quick shake and let it go.</p>
      <p>He chuckled. "I've got to run, or you know, pedal," he said motioning with his paws, "but I was wondering, you wanna…I don't know, go out for coffee sometime?"</p>
      <p>Judy stared at the bunny in shock. True, it wasn't as if this was the first time she had ever been asked out on a date, but it was the first time since she had come to Zootopia.</p>
      <p>Feeling suddenly overwhelmed and embarrassed, her heart pounding wildly in her chest, she turned her gaze away. "I don't…" she looked over at Clawhauser who was -honest to goodness- snacking on popcorn as he watched them with a lovesick smile on his face.</p>
      <p>Turning away from the cheetah, her eyes met Freddy's earnest, light grey gaze. "I just… It's my first day back," she said as if this was a great and reasonable explanation for why she was reluctant to go out for coffee with the handsome buck, which was truthfully no big deal because why would it be? It was <em>only</em> coffee. But still…</p>
      <p>Freddy's gaze fell. "Right, the warehouse," he said somberly.</p>
      <p>"Yeah," Judy said with true regret. "It's just…not a good time right now. Work is…and Nick."</p>
      <p>"Right, your partner. I heard he was injured pretty badly," Freddy said.</p>
      <p>"He was," Judy acknowledged.</p>
      <p>"Well," Freddy began, "I hope he recovers soon and maybe in a few weeks, you'll take me up on that coffee."</p>
      <p>Surprised, Judy found herself saying, "Sure."</p>
      <p>Freddy beamed at her, threw an offhanded salute to Clawhauser and strode from the building.</p>
      <p>Judy stared at the buck's retreating form, watching him through the large windows as he hopped on his bike.</p>
      <p>He glanced over at her and gave her a wave before he pedaled off.</p>
      <p>Judy continued staring at the empty space that Freddy had occupied, as if in a daze, but Clawhauser's admonishment for turning the buck down finally slammed her back to reality. She glanced over her shoulder at the cheetah.</p>
      <p>"Seriously, Judy. Why'd you turn him down?" Clawhauser asked in a hushed whisper as Judy approached his desk.</p>
      <p>"He caught me off guard!" she protested. "And besides, I'm not going out for a date while Nick is recovering and a crazy cat who tried to kill us is still on the loose," she defended.</p>
      <p>Clawhauser let out a sigh. "I get it, but…"</p>
      <p>"No buts," Judy said firmly as she walked away from the desk, her quest for sugary junk forgotten.</p>
      <p>Hours later, Judy stepped out of the elevator and into her and Nick's apartment. There was a single light emanating from the kitchen; the sun having set long ago.</p>
      <p>She had worked hard to make up for her wandering thoughts and hoped to get the pile of files on her desk whittled down so she could start investigating the explosion, and she had been pleased that she had gotten through a good amount of the paperwork.</p>
      <p>"Nick?" she called out before she swore inwardly. Of course, Nick wouldn't have heard her come home and he definitely wouldn't have heard her call his name.</p>
      <p>She had texted him after her introduction to Freddy to make sure that he was okay and he had replied that he was fine. 'Bored but fine,' had been his exact words. He had also told her to stop worrying so much and if she didn't stop texting him every 5 minutes -an unfair accusation as she had only texted him three times- that he would turn off his phone.</p>
      <p>Accepting that he may just go through with his threat, she hadn't texted him again, though he did know what time she should have arrived back at the apartment. Not like she expected him to be waiting for her or anything, but she supposed she had thought to hear something other than absolute silence.</p>
      <p>Entering further into the apartment, she headed for the bedroom.</p>
      <p>She had expected to find Nick lying in bed watching TV, with the mute on, but instead she found him lying on his back, snoring softly, the faint glow of a lamp illuminating his orange fur, turning it a soft copper.</p>
      <p>Judy found herself smiling as she shook her head in resignation. "You tried to do too much today, didn't you?" she asked, knowing that there was no chance that her words or admonishment would disturb the sleeping fox.</p>
      <p>Letting out a sigh she approached the bed. "What am I to do with you, Nick Wilde?" she wondered as she looked at the horrible mess he had made of attempting to change the bandages that covered his still healing shoulder. The wound itself had closed, but the bandages were more to ensure Nick didn't move it around too much, especially when sleeping.</p>
      <p>She reached out, her paw hovering over a patch of fur that had been singed down to the skin and was finally growing back. Smaller scars were peppered here and there across his chest and Judy wondered if she would even notice they were there after his fur grew back. Especially the larger ones.</p>
      <p>She pulled back her paw, not really knowing why she had wanted to run her fingers through his fur and took a step back, slightly rattled by the temptation.</p>
      <p>Moving away from the bed, she made her way to the bathroom where she looked at herself in the mirror.</p>
      <p>Her cheek had survived the claws of Gideon Grey, but not the ocelot's. She now had four vertical scars running diagonally across her cheek, the wounds too deep to allow for her fur to grow back.</p>
      <p>Brushing her fingers across her cheek, she found her mind drifting to Freddy, wondering if he had noticed them before she shook her head. She had no time to be thinking about the buck or caring about what he thought of her.</p>
      <p>She stepped away from the mirror, she got ready for bed, having a quick shower and a quick bite to eat before making her way back to the bedroom.</p>
      <p>Unlike her first entrance, Nick's eyes were open, though his lids were only at half-mast. This was not an unusual occurrence, but in this instance, it was due to exhaustion rather than lazy cynicism.</p>
      <p>"How was your first day back?" he asked her tiredly, obviously struggling to stay awake.</p>
      <p>Judy hurried over to the bed and found herself smiling in pleasure at being able to talk, at least for a few moments, to Nick before she went to bed.</p>
      <p>She looked around for her whiteboard, but decided that Nick was too tired for an account of the day, as well as for the truth.</p>
      <p>It hadn't been a horrible day, it had even been productive towards the end, and meeting Freddy had been awkward but kind of nice, but the truth was that it hadn't been great because Nick hadn't been there. But she didn't want to tell him any of this and instead gave his paw a squeeze, told him it had been good, and gave him a genuine smile, because she was happy to see him.</p>
      <p>Nick grinned back, though she thought she had detected a flash of sadness flicker across his features, but it had disappeared so quickly she wasn't sure if she had imagined it or not.</p>
      <p>"That's good," Nick said squeezing her paw back, obviously able to understand what she had said.</p>
      <p>Letting go of his paw, she turned out the light before slipping into the large bed that they shared.</p>
      <p>The bed was big enough that they could fit Clawhauser comfortably between them, but for some reason, she always found herself curled up close to Nick's side; not quite touching, but close enough that she could feel the heat radiating off his body.</p>
      <p>"Goodnight, Carrots," Nick's voice rumbled in the dark.</p>
      <p>She could hear him turn his head and she instinctively knew that he was looking at her and that he could see her much better than she could see him. In fact, she couldn't really see him at all. He was a dark black shape, darker than the surrounding black and that was it. But she could somehow sense that his gaze was intense; unlike a few moments ago.</p>
      <p>The hidden scrutiny made her slightly self-conscious and she felt as if the heavy undercurrent of that <em>something</em> had returned.</p>
      <p>Ignoring it, she said, "Goodnight, Nick," even though she knew he would not be able to hear her.</p>
      <p>Nick turned his head back a few moments later, releasing her from the gaze she could not see and she felt herself blow out a soft huff of air from her mouth.</p>
      <p>She closed her eyes and tried to ignore her sudden and increased awareness of Nick, all the while wondering what -if anything- was going on between them.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>
        <strong>I know there wasn't a huge amount of Nick and Judy interactions but I figure there was just enough to sate the hunger;)</strong>
      </p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>As always, thank you to all my lovely readers for taking the time and reading this fic, it means so much to me that you guys are liking it!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p><strong>Nick</strong> watched Judy as she paced back and forth in anger.</p>
      <p>'Carrots, you're going to give me a headache if you don't stop pacing like that,' Nick said, his remarks light, not wanting to upset the doe any further.</p>
      <p>She was talking again, a million miles a minute, as she gestured to the whiteboard in her paw.</p>
      <p>He hadn't been able to get the whole story out of her, or at least, not a coherent one, but after a hastily scrawled and erased set of sentences, he concluded that things were not going well at work; as emphasized by two words that had been written in bold and underlined for good measure.</p>
      <p>
        <strong>SIDELINED</strong>
      </p>
      <p>
        <strong>OFFICER GROWLE</strong>
      </p>
      <p>'You aren't being sidelined,' Nick assured her soothingly.</p>
      <p>Judy gave him a glare that would have sent any other mammal to dart away with his or her tail tucked firmly between their legs; Nick was unfazed.</p>
      <p>Judy took her black marker and pointed it firmly at the offending name of Officer Growle.</p>
      <p>'What?' Nick asked innocently. 'I can't quite seem to understand how partnering you with Officer Peter Growle is sidelining you,' he offered smoothly while Judy fumed. 'I admit that the old bear is a little…long in the tooth, as it were, but I think it is unfair to imply that Chief Bogo is purposefully sabotaging you,' he said with a smile, enjoying the flash of anger in Judy's eyes before her shoulders slumped and her anger ran out of steam.</p>
      <p>It was not only unfair but completely ridiculous to cast Chief Bogo as the villain in this piece, because that particular part belonged to Nick.</p>
      <p>Sure, Nick had been almost eager to get Judy out of the apartment, if only to stop her from fussing and to drag himself kicking and screaming back to reality and acknowledge that he and Judy were just friends and could never be anything more.</p>
      <p>A fact that, with every passing day, he was having a harder and harder time remembering.</p>
      <p>But the thought of Judy out on the streets with a partner that wasn't him caused him to mentally review every single officer in the precinct and find them all wanting in some way or another.</p>
      <p>Deep down he knew he was being overly critical and unfair. He <em>knew</em> that the ZPD had some of the very finest officers, especially in Precinct 1, but Nick wasn't able to convince himself that any one of them would be able to make sure Judy was protected, safe, and kept out of trouble.</p>
      <p>Knowing that he had failed at every single one of these requirements made him no less amendable to anyone at Precinct 1 being Judy's partner.</p>
      <p>He would admit that there was a tiny bit of jealousy that whomever her partner would be would spend copious amounts of time with her, but this acknowledgement that perhaps he was acting a little possessive and paranoid did not stop him from texting Chief Bogo and suggesting to him that it may be best if Judy was not thrust back into the field so quickly.</p>
      <p>Nick knew that Judy was going to dive right back into the case, which is what any good cop would do, but he was terrified that by doing this, she was going to get herself killed.</p>
      <p>Because of this, Nick's stomach was twisted into so many knots that he could barely think straight. Thankfully, Chief Bogo hadn't asked him for his reasons for wanting Judy placed on what amounted to desk duty for the foreseeable future, but it may have had to do with the fact that the Chief felt that Judy was too close to the investigation, and wished to keep her out of it; at least for now.</p>
      <p>
        <strong>He is in Records. You know where Records is, right?</strong>
      </p>
      <p>Brought back to the present with Judy shoving the whiteboard in his face, Nick smiled slyly to cover up the pang of guilt that shot through him at his deception.</p>
      <p>For a split second, he thought about confessing to her what he had done, admit that he had gone behind her back to convince Chief Bogo to stick her in records for his own selfish reasons, but he found that he couldn't.</p>
      <p>If Judy found out that he was the architect of her derision, he knew she would have a very hard time forgiving him; may possibly never forgive him. But… he could live with that, because at least she would be alive to hate him. He had thought he had lost her once and he was never going to live through that misery ever again.</p>
      <p>'In the basement, by the boiler,' he answered easily and Judy's eyes narrowed angrily.</p>
      <p><strong>You seem pretty happy about it</strong>, she accused.</p>
      <p>Nick shook his head. 'Just trying to make you feel better. Besides, have you ever worked in Records?' Nick wondered.</p>
      <p>Judy shook her head.</p>
      <p>'And do you think that your job is the only important job at the ZPD?'</p>
      <p>Judy had the grace to look contrite while Nick shoved his screaming conscience in a box and sat on the lid for good measure.</p>
      <p>'Hey, you never know, could be interesting, or you could learn something. I never thought you would shy away at learning something new.' Okay, now he was laying it on thick, but Judy -ears down- gave a half-hearted shrug before she acknowledged to truth of his words with a slight nod.</p>
      <p>Yeah, he was playing dirty by pandering to her ego, but he reminded himself that his intentions were <em>good,</em> if not particularly pure.</p>
      <p>Judy looked down at her feet for a moment before glancing back at him and writing something upon her whiteboard.</p>
      <p>
        <strong>How are you feeling?</strong>
      </p>
      <p>Nick was slightly surprised by the sudden change in topic and narrowed his eyes in speculation.</p>
      <p>Judy looked contrite and he wondered if she was feeling guilty for complaining about her new partner and new assignment when Nick was still bedridden and would probably never grace the portals of the ZPD's Precinct 1 as an Officer again.</p>
      <p>Wanting to distract her and wipe the look of guilt from her face he answered, 'It only hurts to breathe<em> most</em> of the time instead of<em> all</em> the time,' he offered. 'And look,' he continued when Judy looked even guiltier, 'I can lift my ar-' he winced and lowered his arm slowly, regretting trying to prove to both Judy and himself that he was healing faster than he was.</p>
      <p>The stitches in his shoulder were gone and his fur was even growing back in places, but it felt as if he had been laying in bed for four months instead of four weeks.</p>
      <p>And he was done.</p>
      <p>He was not used to lying around doing nothing and it was driving him crazy.</p>
      <p>Judy, looking at him with genuine concern and darting to his side to worry over him, was also driving him crazy, but in a completely different way.</p>
      <p>He waved her away. 'Stop,' he said, 'I'm fine.'</p>
      <p>Judy bit her lip, the familiar look of culpability filing her features, which in turn fueled his own guilt.</p>
      <p>'Carrots, you promised me no more guilt, remember?' She shifted her gaze away and nodded, twitching his blanket back into place. It was a discussion they had had too many times to count and he was sick of it.</p>
      <p>Sure, it sucked he had been creamed by a flying door. He would be devastated if he had permanent hearing loss and could never return to the ZPD, but he would have despised himself if he hadn't followed her into the warehouse.</p>
      <p>'Judy,' he reached out and took her paw in his own, her head snapping up and her ears standing at attention. He rarely used her name, preferring his nickname for her, but what he was about to say was important and he wanted her full attention. 'It tears apart me that the only reason you're still alive is because of sheer, dumb, luck. I know I was hurt -almost died- but I will live each and every single day knowing that I couldn't <em>save you</em>. I would run into that warehouse all over again, knowing what I know, because if doing so is the price I have to pay for you to walk away from being blown up, then fine, I'll pay it. I thought I had <em>lost you </em>and I can't lose you, I-' he shook his head, not willing to confess that particular truth yet. 'No more guilt, no more blame,' he stated firmly.</p>
      <p>Judy's eyes were wide and he feared he had said too much, but he wasn't sure if he cared. Part of him was anticipatory of her reaction, part of him was horrified by what he had confessed, and the last of him relieved at having unburdened even this tiny piece of his soul.</p>
      <p>For her part, Judy seemed stunned by his words and it took every ounce of willpower he had to not take the cowards way out and try to take them back.</p>
      <p>Finally seeming to gather herself, Judy swallowed and gave a nod. Pulling her paw away she quickly reached for the white board.</p>
      <p><strong>No more guilt</strong>, she wrote.</p>
      <p>'Good,' he replied.</p>
      <p>She gave a nod, held the whiteboard in front of her like a shield before erasing what she had written and quickly wrote something else.</p>
      <p>
        <strong>I'm going to go make some dinner</strong>
      </p>
      <p>'Sounds good,' he said with a smile ignoring the pang he felt at Judy not acknowledging his confession either one way or the other, but he found himself returning the favour. 'I think I overdid it today. I'm going to take a little nap.'</p>
      <p>Judy blinked, her expression changing lightning quick from uncertainty to annoyance.</p>
      <p><strong>You promised you weren't going to overdo it!</strong> she quickly wrote.</p>
      <p>'I got bored,' he grumbled.</p>
      <p>A moment of stunned disbelief passed before she became angry.</p>
      <p>
        <strong>SERIOUSLY?!</strong>
      </p>
      <p>
        <strong>YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE RESTING!</strong>
      </p>
      <p>'Yeah, well. Yell at me in all caps later, Carrots,' he said with a yawn and closing his eyes. 'I'm getting some shut-eye,' he said falling instinctively back on self-preservation.</p>
      <p>Nick was internally cursing himself, terrified that his hastily-said words had just cost him his friendship. Feeling panic rising within him at this thought, he forced himself to remain still, pretending he was sleeping because he knew if he said anything now, he would just make things worse.</p>
      <p>He wanted everything to go back to normal, because the thought of losing Judy was worse than her never knowing his true feelings for her, but he wasn't sure if this was possible. At this point, his best hope was that Judy would take his words only at face value and place them into the category of their close friendship and leave it at that.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p><strong>Judy</strong> stared blankly at the wooden table in front of her, her brain still running around in circles three days after Nick's fierce words were uttered.</p>
      <p>It was her first day working with Officer Growle and she couldn't seem to keep her mind focused -an occurrence which seemed to be more common than not of late.</p>
      <p>Thankfully, Officer Growle had yet to return from where he had gone to stock up on doughnuts before Clawhauser ate them all.</p>
      <p>Apparently, the two had an unspoken rivalry where doughy confections were concerned and Officer Growle was quite proud of his ability to snatch away a few boxes from right beneath the young cheetah's nose.</p>
      <p>Her mind turned away from her new partner and back to her old one.</p>
      <p>Nick had confessed to her that he viewed his injuries as some kind of cosmic tit for tat, his voice fierce and containing an edge of misery that only increased her guilt. But his next words had her catching her breath as his voice cracked in despair and even though he hadn't finished whatever it was he was about to say, she was able to fill in the blanks.</p>
      <p><em>What</em> he had been about to say wasn't as important as <em>how</em> he had said it.</p>
      <p>Nick was her best friend and her partner and she knew he felt the same way, but she swore she could hear this note in his voice that spoke to something much deeper and caused her to question if Nick's feelings had ventured beyond those of friendship.</p>
      <p>Every time she asked herself this question, she felt disbelief and chastised herself for being ridiculous and reading too much into his tone; especially since he could no longer hear his own voice.</p>
      <p>Judy could admit that when she thought she could lose Nick, that her world had shattered and narrowed to the pinpoint focus of clinging to hope that Nick would pull through, but this didn't mean that she felt anything more than friendship for him…didn't it?</p>
      <p>She loved Nick, she knew she did. She honestly couldn't imagine her life without him in it, but love with a capital L: romantic love…?</p>
      <p>No. Impossible.</p>
      <p>They weren't even close to the same <em>species</em>. Nick was a fox and she was a bunny. He was a predator and she was prey. They couldn't be more on opposite sides of the spectrum if they tried.</p>
      <p>That kind of relationship would be…completely against <em>everything</em>.</p>
      <p>In Zootopia anyone could be anything, but predators did not date prey. Ever.</p>
      <p>Which meant that she was reading way too much into things… Right?</p>
      <p>And around her mind would go again.</p>
      <p>Unable to come to a consensus either way, she had pretended that everything was normal and Nick didn't even miss a beat.</p>
      <p>Nick had slept for the rest of the evening, not even waking up for dinner, and her anger at him for pushing himself so hard had only increased. And because she was fully cabable of understanding this emotion and situation, she focused upon this instead of what had happened…or hadn't happened…</p>
      <p>Over the weekend everything had slid back into the normalcy of their routine and she breathed a sigh of relief that she had obviously just imagined things and she stomped firmly down upon the flare of something that felt suspiciously like despair at this realization.</p>
      <p>Things had returned to normal and this was a good thing. A great thing. What did it matter that she found herself staring at him a little longer than she should, or wondering why, when he followed her with his eyes, that her heart would beat just that little bit faster?</p>
      <p>The thump of a cardboard box hitting the table in front of her caused her to jump in her seat and wonder how a thousand-pound brown bear could move so silently.</p>
      <p>Looking up at her new partner, the big bear finished popping a pink glazed doughnut into his mouth as he pulled a box of doughnuts from atop the box her had just plopped down in front of her, breaking her from her cyclical thoughts.</p>
      <p>"Doughnut?" her partner asked her, lifting the lid and giving her a grin. "Clawhauser thought he could hide this one in his drawer, well, I showed him," he said with a wink and Judy couldn't help but chuckle a little.</p>
      <p>Officer Growle was the oldest officer on the force, nearing retirement in a year or two, but there was a youthful kind of mischievousness that would twinkle in his eyes every now and then that belied his age.</p>
      <p>"No thanks," Judy answered politely.</p>
      <p>Growle eyed her up, eyes narrowing slightly. "You don't like doughnuts? Or are you on a diet or something?" he asked gruffly.</p>
      <p>Judy blinked in surprise before answering, "I…uh…love doughnuts. Not on a diet, just…" she paused for a moment. She had been going to say she was too nervous to eat, but that wasn't quite true. She wasn't nervous per se, just…too distracted to eat, but this wasn't something she felt comfortable sharing, so offered instead, "I already had three before I came down," she lied.</p>
      <p>The bear looked at her a moment, a tongue darting out and licking icing from his greying muzzle before he gave a wide grin, showing his slightly worn, yellow teeth. "We're going to get along just fine," he said as he popped another doughnut into his mouth and put the box of doughnuts down on the table.</p>
      <p>"So…uh…what's this?" Judy asked pointing to the brown cardboard box in front of her.</p>
      <p>"First assignment," he answered before gesturing to the long hallway filled with shelves upon shelves of identical file boxes. "The ZPD is digitizing all of Zootopia's case files."</p>
      <p>"Uh…digitizing is only for…" her voice trailed off and decided that by the look on the bear's face, he didn't care that digitizing was only regarding the conversion of audio or film to digital. "Never mind, please continue."</p>
      <p>"Every Precinct throughout Zootopia and the surrounding areas are transcribing all of their files and putting them in a database that can be viewed by the other precincts. So, for example, if a robbery is committed in Tundratown and the responders are from Precinct 2, then we here at Precinct 1 can view the file instead of having to request a copy if we notice there has been a rash of similar crimes in our district."</p>
      <p>Judy nodded in understanding as she looked at the rows of boxes. "And how many of these have already been done?" she asked, hoping that the box in front of her was the last one that needed to be transcribed.</p>
      <p>The bear looked behind him and motioned to a shelf with four boxes on it. "These are the ones that have been done."</p>
      <p>Judy felt her ears fall. "Seriously?" she squeaked.</p>
      <p>"Yup." Officer Growle said with a nod and apparently not at all daunted by the task in front of him.</p>
      <p>"And how long have you been working on this?" Judy wondered, dreading the answer.</p>
      <p>"Oh, about six months," he said with a proud smile.</p>
      <p>Judy looked back at the shelves that wound their way along the entirety of the basement beneath the main floor of the ZPD and she felt her heart sink before giving her head a shake, straightening her spine, and focusing on the task ahead.</p>
      <p>"Right," she said grabbing the box from the table, she walked over to one of the two computer terminals to set to work.</p>
      <p>Officer Growle popped another doughnut into his mouth and took another box of files down from the shelf and sat down next to her in front of the other computer terminal.</p>
      <p>Music suddenly filled the space and she looked over at the old bear who had turned on an outdated radio which was blaring country music.</p>
      <p>Having grown up in Bunny Burrow, country music was a staple and although it was not her preference, it was familiar and somewhat soothing.</p>
      <p>"Hope you don't mind," the affable bear ventured.</p>
      <p>"No, it's fine," she said as she took the lid off the first box and pulled out a file. Placing it on the desk in front of her, she opened it up.</p>
      <p>Logging into the computer she began transcribing the police report. Finishing the details of the case -the theft of a car in Sahara Square- she pulled out the next file before glancing over at her new partner.</p>
      <p>He had a file open in front of him, a long claw extended as he hit the letter on the keyboard, looked up to make sure he had pressed the right one, before looking back down at the keyboard in search of the next letter.</p>
      <p>Judy turned away and stifled a groan. It was obvious now that it had taken six months to transcribe all of the reports in those four boxes because Officer Growle was probably the slowest typist in all of the ZPD.</p>
      <p><em>He could give Flash a run for his money</em>, Judy thought to herself before she turned her attention back to her own work.</p>
      <p>Suddenly determined to efficiently and speedily complete the box in front of her within half and hour, she set to work, easily attaining her objective with two whole minutes to spare. Pleased by this success, she continued at her pace, going through several boxes before a paw upon her shoulder stopped her industrious progress.</p>
      <p>"You're going to burn your keyboard out," Officer Growle said kindly as he shoved a sandwich in her face. "That fox partner of yours change you into a meat-eater yet?" he asked as she eyed the sandwich warily.</p>
      <p>"No," she admitted as Officer Growle chuckled.</p>
      <p>"Don't worry, it's vegetarian," he said as he plopped down on his computer chair and tore into his own sandwich.</p>
      <p>"Thank you," she said as she swivelled around to look at the clock, shocked to find that it was lunch time.</p>
      <p>"I know what you are thinking," the bear offered as he turned the radio down. "And I appreciate that you are so determined to get all of these files into the database, but most of these cases are years old and unsolved; they aren't going anywhere. I know you think I'm slow, and I am," he chuckled. "I wasn't even that fast on a typewriter; an old machine that made a very satisfying 'ding' noise at the end of each line. And don't even get me started on you kids and your inability to spell without the computer telling you that you are spelling the word wrong."</p>
      <p>Judy took a bite of her sandwich and fortified herself to listen to the old bear to launch into a lecture of 'how easy cops have it now' and other tales of the 'good old days,' but the bear only shook his head and let out a huff of air from his nostrils.</p>
      <p>"I was young once," the bear reminisced, "all full of pep and vinegar, and I can see that you are too." He eyed her thoughtfully. "So, what'd you do to get sent down here?"</p>
      <p>Judy blinked at the sudden question and change in topic.</p>
      <p>"N-nothing," she stammered. "I just…needed a partner until Nick gets back."</p>
      <p>The old bear lifted a brow ridge. "I haven't had a partner since Eddie retired two years ago. Trust me, you did something to get sent down here."</p>
      <p>"Chief Bogo never said that I…" she began and bit her lip in confusion. Had Chief Bogo not had the heart to tell her that she was being disciplined for her role in getting Nick hurt? She had disobeyed orders, left her post, and ruined the investigation, but in doing so she had discovered the warehouse that had been used for…something they didn't know. Any evidence had been destroyed, and they were no further ahead now than they had been a month ago.</p>
      <p>She looked down at her sandwich, her appetite suddenly gone.</p>
      <p>"You aren't the only one who has ever made a wrong call that got their partner hurt," he said as he took a bite of his sandwich, staring into space for a moment of reflection before turning his attention back to her. "We're cops, it is part of the job. We have a split second to make a decision; sometimes it's the right one and sometimes it's the wrong one. We can't change the past, and you can blame yourself, but instead of beating yourself up over it, learn from it."</p>
      <p>"But-"</p>
      <p>"No buts, and no excuses either," the old bear interrupted, taking another bite of his sandwich before pointing it at her. "Listen, from what I've heard, you're a good cop. You and that fox- "</p>
      <p>"Nick…his name is Nick," Judy interrupted, not liking that Officer Growle continued to call Nick 'that fox'.</p>
      <p>He waved her protest away with his sandwich. "Regardless, he comes from the wrong side of the law and you come from the right side of it. Together you two are successful because you have both had different experiences that allow you to ferret out information and see patterns that no one else has been able to."</p>
      <p>Judy waited, wondering where the bear was going with his observation.</p>
      <p>"So, maybe you were sent down here to get a little distance," the bear offered thoughtfully.</p>
      <p>Judy looked at Officer Growle, her expression questioning.</p>
      <p>"The spectacular crime fighting duo of Hopps and Wilde is down to just Hopps, which means that ever since you two were blown up all you have been thinking about is your guilt and trying to find a way to fix it."</p>
      <p>Judy shifted her eyes away and stared at her sandwich. He was, of course, right. It wasn't unusual for cops to get obsessed with certain cases, and she did feel as though if she was able to figure out what was going on that she would be able to somehow make things better for Nick, gain some…. not revenge, but…closure? for him.</p>
      <p>"I don't need distance," she protested, looking back at the old bear with a straight spine and a challenge in her voice.</p>
      <p>He chuckled and took another bite of his sandwich. "You know why you were able to solve the Nighthowler incident?"</p>
      <p>"Good police work and Nick's help," she answered easily.</p>
      <p>"True. But I would say that luck and a fresh perspective helped," he answered. "Those cops up there," he motioned above his head with his sandwich, which was about to lose a tomato if he didn't quit using it as a prop, "they had been working on those cases for months. Besides the fact that all the mammals that had gone missing were predators, there was no connection. Different species, different districts, and none of them knew each other. And so, they were all treated as their own separate entities. But you come in, straight from the academy with no preconceived notions about anything and blew the lid wide open on a much wider conspiracy." He snatched the tomato in his jaws, chewing thoughtfully before he finished. "Point is, give your brain a break. Reset, and maybe when you're finished down here, you'll have fresh eyes and a new perspective on everything."</p>
      <p>Judy gave a half-hearted shrug. "Maybe," she agreed. "Or we will lose everything and never be able to pick up the trail again."</p>
      <p>"Some things take time. You didn't solve the Nighthowler case in one day, or even a month," he pointed out.</p>
      <p>Giving a nod of acknowledgement she knew he was right, but it was so hard to let something so big and important go.</p>
      <p>"But 'till that happens," he began with a smile, finishing off his sandwich and dusting the crumbs off his paws, "keep up the good work. At the rate you're going, we'll probably be able to get this whole shelf done in about three months, two and a half if we really push it."</p>
      <p>Judy looked at the shelf and groaned.</p>
      <p>The old bear laughed and spun in his chair towards his computer. "Oh, and thank your boyfriend for the sandwich for me."</p>
      <p>Judy's head shot up; her ears stood up on end and she looked at the bear in shock as heat flooded her cheeks, an unbidden image of Nick blooming in her mind.</p>
      <p>"I don't have a boyfriend," she blurted out in embarrassment.</p>
      <p>"Really? Why not? A young buck like that bringing you food. I'd say he's a keeper."</p>
      <p>"Young buck?" Judy asked, latching onto a detail from the old bear's life advice.</p>
      <p>"Dark grey, bike messenger, dropped off the sandwiches with Clawhauser. I just saw him as he was leaving, didn't get a chance to thank him."</p>
      <p>"Freddy!?" she gasped in shock.</p>
      <p>Officer Growle gave a one shouldered shrug.</p>
      <p>"We're not… He's asked me out for coffee, but…" Judy's words trailed off awkwardly finding that she was oddly touched by the thoughtfulness Freddy had shown to her and her new partner.</p>
      <p>"Huh. Whelp, some advice from an old bear, don't let this job become your life. Cops always think they're better off alone because of the risks of the job, but really, when you find the one who makes you want to come home alive every night, make sure you don't ever let them go."</p>
      <p>Judy gave the bear a weak smile and nodded. The bear's advice wasn't bad, but…Freddy?</p>
      <p>She looked down at the half-eaten sandwich in her paws. Maybe she should give the young buck a chance, after all, it was <em>just</em> coffee.</p>
      <p>Finishing off her sandwich, she turned her attention back to her task, ruthlessly silencing the small voice inside her head that questioned why it was that when Officer Growle had mentioned a boyfriend, Nick had been the mammal that had immediately popped into her head.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>
        <strong>Hope everyone enjoyed! I know, it's a slow burn. LOL</strong>
      </p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello all!<br/>Thank you to everyone who is reading and commenting and leaving kuddos, I can't thankyou guys enough!!<br/>I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Judy</strong> frowned, staring  down at the pile of case files in front of her. Three case files were spread open over her keyboard, her eyes studying each name and the dates they had been filed.</p>
<p>"You're supposed to be transcribing those into the system, not trying to solve them," Officer Growle observed as he lumbered past her with another box of cold case files.</p>
<p>"I know, but…over the past few weeks I've noticed that there are an awful lot of unsolved missing mammal cases."</p>
<p>"There are a lot of unsolved cases period," the bear replied as he set the box of files on the tabletop and sat down heavily in his swivel chair, the metal creaking ominously under his weight. "Some cases just go cold, no matter how good the officers assigned to them."</p>
<p>"But I'm not talking about stolen wallets, a stolen car, break-ins, or shady business dealings, I'm talking about mammals that are <em>missing</em>," she reiterated. "We all worked hard on the missing mammal cases connected with the Nighthowler incident and solved them."</p>
<p>The old bear sighed and scooted his chair closer to her. "Those cases were different," he stated as he picked up one of the files, the mugshot of a young pig glaring at the camera. "Sometimes mammals go missing, sometimes they just leave Zootopia and don't tell anyone, and sometimes they leave home to lose themselves in Zootopia and start a new life. The mammals affected by the Nighthowler incident were different because…" he looked at her tiredly, "mammals cared that they were missing," he stated bluntly. "Most of the mammals in these case files were engaged in criminal activities, were transient, or homeless. Many of them, though not all, lived in Happytown, and unfortunately, the residents there are not very forthcoming or helpful when it comes to police investigations."</p>
<p>"But there must be hundreds of mammals who are missing, and you are saying that no one cared enough to look?" Judy asked incredulously.</p>
<p>"I already told you, the officers looked. It's just that often-times there are no leads, no one knows anything, or no one wants to say anything," he replied.</p>
<p>"But did anyone notice that there are so many? That most of them are prey? That there could be so many more missing mammals because we only have some of the reports," she pointed out, feeling a fierce light burning within her at the amount of missing mammal cold case files there were.</p>
<p>"Hopps, I get it. You're all fresh and new, this job hasn't ground you down yet, which is good, but you are stuck down here doing mundane data-entry and you are trying to make connections and see things and solve cases that no one has looked at in years just to stop your brain from atrophying."</p>
<p>Judy was about to protest this assertion, but Officer Growle held up a paw and continued.</p>
<p>"To answer your questions, yes, we have noticed there are so many missing mammals and that a good portion are prey, but Zootopia is home to millions of inhabitants, not including the outlying areas, and most of those inhabitants are prey. It makes statistical sense that more prey than predators would be missing because prey are more numerous than predators. As for how many mammals missing in total, we do share our missing mammal reports with the other precincts, and they share theirs with us, so while there are no doubt unreported cases of mammals that have gone missing, it isn't because of precincts keeping their cases to themselves."</p>
<p>Judy felt herself deflate slightly at Officer Growle's words.</p>
<p>"We hope for the best," Officer Growle told her seriously. "We hope that they aren't missing, that they just don't want to be found, or they moved away from Zootopia. It's how we're able to shove these files in those boxes, put the lids on them, and put them in this basement."</p>
<p>Looking away from the old bear and at the files she had spread out in front f her, she gave an understanding nod. It was better to believe that the mammals that stared back at her were all okay and hadn't suffered some horrible, unknown fate. Or possibly even a known one, such as getting on the wrong side of Mr. Big.</p>
<p>But Officer Growle was right, there were some cases that had no leads, the trail running cold, and sometimes just slipping through the cracks. Unfortunately, this concession didn't make her feel any better, somehow, it made her feel worse. It felt as if every cop that had preceded her had failed these mammals in some way, but she knew that the cops were not completely to blame.</p>
<p>Sighing, she pushed the files aside, placing them in a pile to transcribe.</p>
<p>"Hopps, why don't you go grab a coffee or a take a break or something, it's almost lunch anyway," Officer Growle said as he turned back to his own computer.</p>
<p>"Okay," she said dejectedly as she hopped down from her chair feeling oddly despondent.</p>
<p>At the Academy, they learned the skills they would need to survive Zootopia, the rule of law, as well as the techniques to solve cases, but it didn't quite prepare any officer for the realities of taking what they had learned, and applying the animal cost to the crime.</p>
<p>Walking slowly up the steps, her paw gripping the rail, she reached the main floor of the precinct.</p>
<p>A familiar, dark-grey furred bunny was standing talking with Clawhauser, who caught her eye and waved, causing Freddy to turn around and offer her a wide grin.</p>
<p>She gave a forced smile in return, feeling embarrassed, awkward, and unsure about everything to do with the young buck.</p>
<p>After he had bought her and Officer Growle the sandwiches three weeks ago, she had not been able to thank him until nearly a week later as he had taken over for another biker's route.</p>
<p>Their paths had crossed again and she had thanked him by buying him a coffee a few days later when he had a few minutes to spare. They had quickly walked to the coffee shop down the block to grab their drinks before immediately heading back. She had bought a blueberry frappe for herself and he had ordered the blackest coffee available.</p>
<p>She had noted at the time that, unlike Nick, who dumped enough sugar in his coffee to barely be called coffee anymore, Freddy like the bitter brew completely unaltered.</p>
<p>Freddy had asked for her number and they had exchanged them. He hadn't asked her out again, and the previous offer of a real coffee date was still hanging between them, but she knew that she was going to have to address it one way or another soon.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, she felt as if she was at war with herself. She<em> liked</em> Freddy. She thought he was sweet and funny and wouldn't mind getting to know him better -their conversations thus far being constrained to brief intervals of time. At the same time, she felt this deep, black pit of clawing guilt open within her at the thought of actually going out with him for something as innocuous as a coffee date because of Nick.</p>
<p>Going home and telling Nick about Freddy twisted her up into all kinds of knots that she couldn't seem to untangle or pull apart.</p>
<p>Nick was finally able to walk around a little, his ribs and shoulder nearly healed, and most of his fur had even grown back, but he was still completely deaf and the thought of telling him that while she was at work she had met someone that she wanted to get to know better made her feel like she was leaving him behind and happily moving on with her life while Nick was stuck at home, in limbo, waiting to see if his hearing would ever return and if he would be able to return to the ZPD as her partner.</p>
<p>If this were not bad enough, she had noticed that the odd tension that had formed between them ever since she had learned of Nick's deep regret at not being able to save her, and his belief that his injuries were some kind of cosmic payment for her still being alive, had not gone anywhere.</p>
<p>It was hard to explain exactly what this tension was, but she felt more aware of Nick in ways she hadn't been before and there had been moments of intensity -a look here, an accidental touch there- that she was unable to quantify.</p>
<p>These things combined to create uneasiness and hesitation in pursuing anything with Freddy, which was unfair to the young buck who had been nothing but kind and thoughtful towards her.</p>
<p>Taking a steadying breath, she made her way over to Clawhauser's desk.</p>
<p>"Hey, Judy," Freddy said to her, his smile fading at whatever he saw on her face. "Are you okay?" he asked in concern.</p>
<p>"Your ears are droopy," Clawhauser pointed out helpfully.</p>
<p>"My ears are…" she sighed, not bothering to try to deny what was obvious. "I just-" she cut herself off, knowing that she couldn't tell either male the current thoughts that were swirling around in her head. "I needed a break," she explained, which was true.</p>
<p>"Don't blame you," Clawhauser said as he gave a shudder. "I mean, you've been down there for weeks! It's horrible."</p>
<p>"I'll tell Growle that you said that," she replied sweetly.</p>
<p>Clawhauser's ears shot up and his spine stiffened. "I mean…it wasn't awful… It was… Growle is… Oh, I think I hear Chief Bogo calling me," Clawhauser said as the cheetah moved faster than Judy thought he could towards the stairs that led to the upper level where Chief Bogo's office was.</p>
<p>"I didn't think he could move so fast," Freddy said in surprise as he watched the cheetah go, and Judy chuckled at having her inner thoughts shared aloud.</p>
<p>Freddy turned his attention back to her and smiled. "Feel better?" he wondered.</p>
<p>"Only a little bit," she acknowledged.</p>
<p>"Want to talk about it?" he asked.</p>
<p>Surprised, she wondered, "Don't you have to get back to work?"</p>
<p>"I have the day off," he admitted.</p>
<p>"Really?" she asked as she noticed that he wasn't wearing his helmet or messenger bag. "Oh…" she said as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "Then why are you here?"</p>
<p>Freddy gave her an uncertain smile. "I was hoping you would go for lunch with me," he offered.</p>
<p>Judy stared at the buck. "I…" she paused, waffling. "Okay," she agreed, feeling that she owed it to herself to go out for lunch with him, because it was<em> only</em> lunch, she needed a break, and she needed to eat. Company wasn't a bad thing.</p>
<p>His ears perked up and he gave her a brilliant smile. "That's great! So I'll come back-"</p>
<p>"I was taking a break now," she told him, knowing that it was a little early for lunch, but not by much and figured that she needed this break sooner rather than later. She needed to rest her brain and control her disappointment at being unable to do anything about the cold cases she was transcribing.</p>
<p>She also knew that if she didn't go for lunch with Freddy now, she may not be brave enough to agree to Freddy's offer later.</p>
<p>"So where did you want to eat?" Freddy asked as he fell into step beside her as she walked towards the precinct doors.</p>
<p>"There's a café just down the street," she said, deciding she liked the idea of sitting out on the patio. It was a beautiful day and eating out on a patio was a very informal environment that she felt comfortable in.</p>
<p>"Oh, okay," Freddy said and Judy looked over at him as they passed through the doors.</p>
<p>"Is that okay?" she asked, stopping on the front sidewalk, unsure if he had other ideas though he had given her the choice.</p>
<p>"Yeah, no, that's fine," he said.</p>
<p>She looked over at him, trying to gauge the truthfulness of his words.</p>
<p>"No, really," he said laughing and holding up his paws in surrender at her probing gaze. "I guess I was hoping for something a little nicer than a quick bite to eat at a café, but I should have timed it better so that we both had a day off and could have had a nice lunch at a restaurant, or maybe even dinner, but I was a little too eager," he admitted.</p>
<p>Judy nodded at him, giving him a shy smile as they walked down the street towards the café.</p>
<p>"So, you actually have days off?' she asked, needing to distract herself from thoughts of Nick and the cold case files.</p>
<p>Freddy chuckled. "Yes, I have days off. I assume you have them too," he said teasingly and she responded in turn, relaxing.</p>
<p>"I do," she answered. "So, what do you like to do on your days off?" she asked trying to make small talk.</p>
<p>"Besides asking cute bunnies out for lunch?" he asked smoothly.</p>
<p>She gave a sly smile, trying to control a blush at the term 'cute bunny' and wondered, "Oh, so you are in a habit of asking out cute, random bunnies?"</p>
<p>His ears fell as he realized how his words could be construed. "No! I mean…Not always! I've asked other bunnies out, of course," he reassured his ego before quickly adding, "but not lately."</p>
<p>Judy lifted a brow-ridge and decided to quit playing with such easy prey. "Okay, okay," she said in a placating fashion. "So besides not asking out any cute bunnies lately but me, what else do you like to do?" she wondered.</p>
<p>"Well…" he began thoughtfully, "I like to run, but really, what bunny doesn't?" he said with a shrug, as if all bunnies liked to run for fun. To be fair, most bunnies did, but she did enough running during her job and for training purposes that she didn't consider it 'fun'. Perhaps freeing would be a better word. It was nice to just let go and tear down a trail or path with nothing but a good tune in her ears and the wind in her fur.</p>
<p>At this thought, she gloomily realized that it had been around two months since she had gone for a run.</p>
<p>"And I like restoring old cars," Freddy finished, interrupting her disheartening thought.</p>
<p>"Really?" Judy said in surprise, slowing her pace. "But you-"</p>
<p>"-ride a bike for a living?" he finished her sentence with a wry grin.</p>
<p>"Yeah," she said as they stopped in front of the café, Freddy opening the door for her and ushering her inside.</p>
<p>"Well," he began as they walked over to the counter and waited in line, perusing the lunch-time offerings. "I like being outside in the fresh air and meeting new mammals. A bike is also much faster than a car in many places, except perhaps Tundratown. But pulling apart an old car, repairing it, finding authentic parts to replace ones that aren't working, that's my passion."</p>
<p>"Huh," she said, surprised by the admission and intrigued as well. "I never would have pegged you for a car enthusiast."</p>
<p>"Well, I am just full of surprises," he said with a flirtatious grin.</p>
<p>Judy laughed, shook her head and studied the boards above the counter, deciding what to order.</p>
<p>"Know what you want yet?" Freddy asked her.</p>
<p>"I think I'm going to get a veggie wrap and a carrot juice," she told him. "You?"</p>
<p>"Sounds good to me," he said with a nod. "How about you grab us a seat before this place fills up and I will order everything."</p>
<p>Judy balked at this. "No, I can pay for my own lunch," she protested.</p>
<p>"I invited you out, my treat," she was about to insist that she pay for her own meal when he added, "What would my mother think of me if I invited a doe on a date and then made her pay? She would be horrified," he stated. "You wouldn't want to horrify my mother, now would you?" he asked.</p>
<p>Judy blew out a breath, knowing when she had been beat. "Okay… Thank you," she acquiesced.</p>
<p>Freddy smiled and Judy turned and went to find a table outside of the café in the patio area.</p>
<p>Strolling outside, she found a nice spot in the corner of the cordoned off area and sat down on the wrought iron chair. Placing her elbows on the tabletop and resting her chin on her paws, she waited for Freddy and mused that, so far, their date was going rather well.</p>
<p>A moment later, her phone began to ring and she saw that it was her parents. Realizing that she hadn't talked to them for a few weeks and figuring that she had some time before Freddy brought their lunch to the table, she answered her phone.</p>
<p>"Hey Mom, hey Dad," she greeted them.</p>
<p>"Hey there, Jude the Dude," her father said jovially.</p>
<p>"How are things, dear?" her mother asked in concern, knowing that their last conversation had been a little...tense.</p>
<p>"Um…they're okay," she said, her mind flittering over Nick and his still healing body and her frustration with being unable to work the case that had caused her life to be suddenly turned upside down. "How are things there?" she asked, curious on how her brothers and sisters were doing.</p>
<p>"Well," her mother began. "Your-"</p>
<p>"Judy," she heard Freddy's voice from over her shoulder and she turned her head to look at him. "Did you want mustard on your sandwich? I didn't know so I- Oh, sorry. I didn't realize that I was interrupting," he said staring at her phone.</p>
<p>"Oh, thank the stars!" her father blurted out. "A bunny!"</p>
<p>Judy's head whipped back around to stare at her screen.</p>
<p>"Uh…" Judy trailed off in surprise.</p>
<p>"Look, Bonnie, a bunny!" her father said as his face squished in closer to the screen. "She's dating a bunny!"</p>
<p>"Dad!" Judy felt her cheeks flame.</p>
<p>"No, no," her father said, cutting her off. "We were really getting worried about you and that fox."</p>
<p>Frowning in confusion she said, "What?!"</p>
<p>"You see, dear," her mother began, pushing Judy's father out of the way. "We were just a little concerned-</p>
<p>"-a lot concerned," her father interrupted.</p>
<p>Her mother ignored him, "-that your attachment to Nick had become a little…" her mother seemed to struggle to find the right word. "Serious."</p>
<p>"Serious?" she asked, not knowing where her parents were going with this conversation.</p>
<p>"Not that we think you'd actually <em>date</em> a fox," her mother assured her.</p>
<p>"We thought he was your boyfriend," her father put in bluntly.</p>
<p>"YOU," her mother corrected. "You thought he was her boyfriend," her mother said to her father.</p>
<p>"You what!?" Judy yelped incredulously.</p>
<p>"We <em>like</em> Nick," her mother began. "But you have to realize how things look."</p>
<p>"We work together!" she pointed out. "He's my best friend!"</p>
<p>"Which we understand," her mother soothed. "But…you two are very attached, and the way you two interact..."</p>
<p>"It's strange," her father put in gruffly.</p>
<p>"It isn't strange," Judy argued, knowing that her parents weren't wrong, but that didn't make her and Nick's relationship odd or romantic.</p>
<p>"It isn't natural to spend that much time with a predator," her father said.</p>
<p>"Stu, you and Gideon spend a lot of time together," her mother pointed out.</p>
<p>"Yeah, but Gideon doesn't look at me like Nick looks at Judy," her father responded.</p>
<p>"I'm hanging up now," Judy said, putting words into action, not knowing whether to be mortified or furious. She felt both emotions rolling through her like a tidal wave, but she felt embarrassment win out as Freddy set the tray down in front of her and took the seat opposite of her.</p>
<p>Letting out a heavy sigh, she thought that she would be used to dealing with high levels of humiliation after living in an apartment with paper-thin walls and nosey neighbours who were very quick to give their opinion on everything, but this was a whole new level of embarrassment.</p>
<p>"Well…that happened," Judy said as she forced herself to meet Freddy's light-grey gaze.</p>
<p>"Your parents seem…nice," Freddy said as he passed her a sandwich. "No mustard by the way."</p>
<p>"Thank you," she said a little disappointed that her sandwich lacked the yellow condiment, but knowing it was at the very bottom of her list of concerns at the moment. Judy sighed heavily. "They are nice, most of the time," she grumbled, "frustrating, embarrassing, and infuriating the rest," she said with a shake of her head. "Not to mention crazy <em>and</em> overprotective."</p>
<p>"If it makes you feel better," Freddy began, opening the paper that surrounded the sandwich, "my parents ask every doe I introduce to them when we are getting married and when to expect their first grandkits."</p>
<p>Judy found herself surprised into a burst of laughter. "I have 275 siblings and my parents already have grandkits, so I'm safe for a little while."</p>
<p>"The joys of coming from a large family," he mused.</p>
<p>"How many siblings do you have?" she asked curiously, opening her own sandwich and taking a bite.</p>
<p>"I don't have any siblings," he replied.</p>
<p>"Really?" she asked, fascinated as she took another bite of her sandwich. Her immediate family was huge, her extended family was enormous.</p>
<p>He nodded. "I grew up in Zootopia, and if you haven't noticed, most bunnies in the city have smaller families than bunnies in the country, due to a serious lack of room, but actually… I was adopted."</p>
<p>"You were?" she wondered, never having met anyone who had been adopted, especially not a bunny.</p>
<p>Freddy looked uncomfortable for a few moments and Judy felt awful for asking about something that may be painful for him.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry, I-" she began.</p>
<p>"No, no, I brought it up. I just… My mom's a bunny and my father's a hare," he said, in a voice that indicated he believed he was revealing something scandalous.</p>
<p>A little surprised by this admission that his parents were of two different species, she didn't find the revelation too shocking. She knew that there would be some who would have problems with the relationship, but a bunny and a hare were from the same family and Judy herself had no problem with it.</p>
<p>If he was expecting a negative reaction, she didn't give him one and he continued, "I don't know anything about my real parents, only that I was found alone in a basket outside a firehouse. I don't know why it was only me and not any of my littermates, but I suppose it's possible I do have siblings I may not know about. As for my adoptive parents, they couldn't have kits, so they adopted me," he told her.</p>
<p>"Wow," Judy said, not knowing what to say and so went with the first positive thing she could think of. "It must have been amazing having a room to yourself." She then added, "And you didn't have to babysit or have your sisters steal your clothes."</p>
<p>Freddy blinked and chuckled. "True. But…it was a little lonely."</p>
<p>Judy nodded. Bunnies were social creatures, they loved being with other bunnies. "I could see that," Judy admitted. She couldn't imagine not being surrounded by her family growing up, but if she was honest with herself, she was less social than the rest of her family and since coming to Zootopia, she hadn't sought out other bunnies.</p>
<p>Giving credence to her parent's observation, she spent almost all of her free-time with Nick.</p>
<p>They ate in silence for a few moments as Judy sunk deeper into her own thoughts, when Freddy's voice suddenly jolted out of her abstraction.</p>
<p>"Sorry, I don't usually bring up the whole 'I was adopted, I'm an only kit, and my parents are different species' thing on the first date, but I figured that you might not be scared away since you didn't freak out when your parents admitted they thought you were dating a fox," he offered with a hesitant smile.</p>
<p>The embarrassment and anger she had felt at her parent's words resurfaced and this must have shown on her face because the smile dropped from Freddy's lips.</p>
<p>"Unless…it does bother you that my parents-" Freddy began in a soft voice.</p>
<p>"No!" Judy interrupted, shaking her head vehemently. "Honestly. Your parent's situation doesn't bother me at all. I just…" she shook her head. "My parents don't seem to understand…" she trailed off because the truth was that she wasn't sure she could even explain her relationship with Nick. Saying that he was her partner and best friend didn't seem to cover the depth and breadth of their connection.</p>
<p>"Probably because they aren't cops," Freddy offered and Judy looked at him in surprise. "Well," Freddy began, taking a bite of his sandwich and thinking about his words. "You and your partner just survived a situation that was life-threatening and terrifying, and it wasn't like it was the first time. I think that creates a special bond because it's a situation only you two and other cops can really appreciate and understand."</p>
<p>Judy gave a smirk. "Apparently bike messengers understand too," she mused, touched and comforted by his words.</p>
<p>Freddy looked embarrassed. "Will you think less of me if I admit that I watch too many cop shows on TV?" he asked causing Judy to chuckle and shake her head indicating she didn't think less of him.</p>
<p>Giving her a sheepish smile before his face returned to thoughtful, serious lines he observed, "It always seems like cops who are partners are like family; maybe even closer. I'm guessing it's because you have to trust each other and have each other's backs because your jobs are so dangerous."</p>
<p>Judy sat there stunned for a moment. Freddy's words made perfect sense, and yet, she still felt as if this didn't completely explain the bond she and Nick shared, but it made her feel better that Freddy was able to put into words what she had been unable to.</p>
<p>"I think if I told my parents that, they would still have a hard time understanding it and then they would <em>really</em> try to get me to go back to Bunnyburrow. They are proud of me and terrified for me at the same time."</p>
<p>"I can see that," he said. "Though, I am pretty sure that is how most parents feel all the time, no matter what career they choose. My parents are convinced I am going to be hit by a vehicle and die."</p>
<p>Judy thought about this and nodded in acknowledgement. Bike messengers had a habit of weaving in and out of traffic and she could see how this could be a fairly dangerous profession. "I take it that you have had some close calls?"</p>
<p>"I've been hit by two cars and a scooter," he told her with a shrug. "Only had to go to the hospital once though. I had a broken leg and arm."</p>
<p>"Wow. I think your job is almost as dangerous as mine," Judy murmured in surprise.</p>
<p>Freddy laughed. "Not even close, but thank you for the comparison," he said taking a drink. "So, what do you like to do?" he asked, turning the conversation away from himself. "Besides taking down bad guys?" he elucidated.</p>
<p>"Oh…" Judy thought about his question, which was sad because she thought that she would be able to pick out a hobby, but she was stymied by the question. It wasn't that she didn't have any hobbies, but they weren't as interesting as running or restoring old cars, and most of them involved Nick.</p>
<p>She and Nick spent a lot of time watching movies and TV, mostly just to decompress after a long day at the ZPD. When they had days off they went on picnics, hung out with Finnick and went for lunch or dinner to different restaurants. On rainy days they stayed in, played cards or boards games and assembled puzzles. She did like reading law books and the occasional romance -which she would vehemently deny- but other than that…</p>
<p>It was no wonder her parents thought Nick was her boyfriend. Their lives were so intertwined that they really spent almost no time alone; even less so now that they lived together.</p>
<p>Realizing she hadn't answered Freddy's question, she replied that she liked to read and watch movies.</p>
<p>Freddy nodded. "Makes sense that you like doing things that take your mind off your work. Must be rough sometimes."</p>
<p>Judy studied her sandwich for a moment. "Yeah," she admitted. "Sometimes cases get stuck in your head. But right now, I'm just frustrated." She finished her sandwich, and tried to think of something else to talk about.</p>
<p>Freddy popped the last of his sandwich in his mouth and gathered up their garbage. "I'm sorry to hear that," he said politely, obviously not wanting to push and she didn't want to dump on him, so instead gave him a smile.</p>
<p>"Thank you, for the lunch," she said politely. "It was nice."</p>
<p>"Was it?" he asked as they both stood and she walked with him to the garbage where he deposited their wrappers in the trash.</p>
<p>Judy laughed. "Yes, it was," she affirmed, realizing that she was telling the truth. Although a little awkward at first, it hadn't been horrible, and she found that she wouldn't mind seeing him again.</p>
<p>Uncertainty suddenly filled her as she realized their date was officially over.</p>
<p>It had been a long time since she had been out on a date and she wasn't sure what he expected of her. A kiss? Another date?</p>
<p>"I need to get back," she told him, not knowing what else to say.</p>
<p>"The wheels of justice are never still," Freddy replied. "I think that's how the quote goes."</p>
<p>Judy laughed. "Turn slowly."</p>
<p>"Huh?" Freddy asked, turning slowly around to face her, causing Judy to burst out laughing.</p>
<p>"No, no," she said with a wave of her hand. "The wheels of justice turn slowly," she corrected. "But let me guess, cop show?"</p>
<p>"You got it," he replied with a wink.</p>
<p>Judy found herself relaxing and shaking her head as they walked from the patio towards the precinct.</p>
<p>"Sooooo… I was wondering," Freddy began and Judy looked over at the buck, uneasiness creeping through her. "On your next day off, would you like to go for a run with me? I can show you some beautiful trails over in Rainforest District," he offered. "And I know the best ones where you can even stay dry," he added as incentive.</p>
<p>"Uh…" Judy stalled, her mind busily trying to figure out how she wanted to answer. Her and Nick usually ran as part of their training, but ever since Nick had been injured, she hadn't gone on her own, mostly because at first, she had been too busy taking care of Nick, and now, because she felt bad for abandoning him while she went to work. She could also admit that on her days off, she wanted to spend time with him. But the prospect of fresh air sounded so good. She had been cooped up in the apartment or in the basement of Precinct 1 for weeks and it was so tempting…</p>
<p>Until she thought about the fact that Nick had just been able to get out of <em>bed</em> without seriously hurting himself and the guilt nearly consumed her.</p>
<p>She felt her ears droop at this thought.</p>
<p>"If you don't want…" Freddy began, his own ears falling with disappointment. "I just thought that-"</p>
<p>"It isn't that," she quickly interrupted him. "Going for a run sounds really nice," she admitted. "I have the weekend off, but I'll have to get back to you on if I'm available."</p>
<p>His ears perked up and Judy found that they were standing outside of Precinct 1.</p>
<p>"Okay," he said with a smile. "Give me a call and let me know if you can make it," he told her. "And thank you for coming out with me."</p>
<p>"Thank you for inviting me," she said as she returned his smile.</p>
<p>Leaning over, he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before giving her a wave and strolling away.</p>
<p>Judy stood in front of the doors for a moment, feeling a little stunned before she returned inside, trying to get her emotions in check and figure out exactly what she was getting herself into and how she felt about it.</p><hr/>
<p><strong>Judy</strong> pulled open the doors of the elevator and slowly entered their apartment.</p>
<p>The rest of the afternoon had passed in a blur of case files and mixed emotions that she was no closer to sorting out than she had been after Freddy had left her after lunch.</p>
<p>She caught sight of Nick standing with his back to her as he perused the contents of the refrigerator.</p>
<p>The smell of cooked burgers filled her nose as Nick closed the fridge, taking out a jar of pickles, a bottle of ketchup, and some mustard.</p>
<p>Turning, Nick jumped, startled by her entrance, causing him to drop everything in his paws. She leapt forward and saved the glass pickle jar from hitting the floor.</p>
<p>"Nick!" she yelled, abandoning the pickles on the floor with the other condiments and rushing to his side, feeling horrible about unintentionally scaring him and causing him to hurt himself. "I'm so sorry!" she apologized.</p>
<p>Nick was wincing and grabbing at his ribs, leaning a little heavily on her as she helped him over to a kitchen chair.</p>
<p>"I'm okay," he said softly.</p>
<p>She relaxed slightly at his words before she found herself breathing in the scent of him; musk mixed with lemon and the hint of the burgers he had been cooking.</p>
<p>With her fingers buried in his soft fur, she felt something pull within her. Regret? Guilt? Something warmer? She wasn't sure what it was but she quickly shoved the uncomfortable, confusing emotion away and concentrated on making sure that Nick hadn't hurt himself.</p>
<p>She reached out and touched his shoulder, making sure he was looking at her. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked, moving her lips slowly so he could read them.</p>
<p>"I'm fine, Carrots, I didn't realize you were home," Nick said to her. "I didn't hear you come in," he said with a self-depreciating laugh that caused her heart to twist painfully in her chest.</p>
<p>"Not funny," she growled, not that he heard her.</p>
<p>"Dinner's on the stove," he said to her. "Veggie burger for you and a bug burger for me. Also made a salad. It's still in the fridge," he said as he began to stand.</p>
<p>"Sit," she said to him, pushing him back down. "I'll get your food."</p>
<p>He nodded apparently understanding her.</p>
<p>She fixed both of their burgers and gave each of them some salad, her thoughts roiling chaotically through her mind as she surreptitiously glanced over at Nick, wondering how, when, and if she should tell him about her lunch date with Freddy.</p>
<p>Walking from the counter to the table, she placed a plate in front of Nick and sat down with her own, her thoughts and heart heavy.</p>
<p>She got halfway through her veggie burger before she realized that it tasted funny and Nick had been trying to get her attention.</p>
<p>Looking at Nick with wide eyes, she glanced down at her burger. "This is yours, isn't it?" she asked him, even though she already knew the answer. In her defence, she had put a lot of fixings on the burger which had masked the initial taste.</p>
<p>She tried to be disgusted, but after the day she had had, she couldn't find the energy to care. In actuality, it didn't taste that bad, mostly because of the mustard (a lot of mustard) and the ketchup, pickles, lettuce, tomato, and onions that had been heaped upon it.</p>
<p>Putting the burger back on her plate, she pushed it towards Nick, her appetite gone.</p>
<p>"There's only room for one deaf mammal in this relationship, and I've got that one covered," he said in a light-hearted tone, but his face was full of concern, his ears lying against his head in worry. "What's going on, Carrots?" he asked gently.</p>
<p>Judy looked over at him, her heart twisting as culpable-filled dread flowed through her to settle like a lead weight in her stomach. She thought about telling Nick about Freddy, it was right there on the tip of her tongue to recount the date as well as the embarrassing phone call with her parents, but when she opened her mouth, no words came out.</p>
<p>She didn't know why it was so hard; why it felt like she was somehow betraying Nick. It didn't make any sense. She knew she felt guilty that she was moving on with her life while Nick was still struggling with getting out of bed every day, but the more she revisited this line of reasoning, the more hollowly it sounded within her.</p>
<p>Snapping her mouth shut, she resolutely pushed herself away from the table and went in search of her whiteboard. A few moments later she returned, and as she glanced at Nick solemnly, she wrote upon the board in black marker.</p>
<p>
  <strong>Tell me about Happytown</strong>
</p><hr/>
<p>
  <strong>I have a sneaking suspicion that things are going to get a little sticky...</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Thank you all for reading! Hope you enjoyed. And I know, not much Judy/Nick this chapter, but trust me next chapter is going to be full of Judy and Nick XD. </strong>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello all!! Last update before Christmas!<br/>Hope you guys all have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays as well!!!<br/>Thank you to everyone who has read, left kuddos, and commented on this fic!</p>
<p>Dark</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Nick</strong> stared at the black letters drawn upon the whiteboard: <strong>Tell me about Happytown.</strong></p>
<p>He didn't answer Judy right away, too many emotions were flittering through his mind -shame, anger, sorrow, and fear.</p>
<p>Happytown was a word that elicited too many feelings and memories and not a single one of them was good.</p>
<p>Well…this was perhaps not completely correct. The slum was a cesspool of filth, despair, and mammal suffering, but there had been one small thing to come of it that he supposed made up for everything that he had endured.</p>
<p>Still, even this one consolation was not enough to cause him to think of Happytown with anything other than abhorrence and the thought of having to dig up and bring into the light the memories he had buried as deeply as he could, tempted him to turn tail and bolt. The only things keeping him glued to his seat were his injuries and the fact that he was highly suspicious of Judy's reason for asking him to tell her about it.</p>
<p>He could believe that it was only idle curiosity brought about by the boredom of her new assignment and the recollection of his seeming knowledge of Happytown while they had pursued their quarry through the narrow streets and back alleys, but his instincts told him that this notion was most likely nothing more than wishful thinking.</p>
<p>'Why?' he asked carefully, trying to keep any inflection from his voice; though he was unsure if he managed to succeed or fail at this.</p>
<p>
  <strong>Because it's important</strong>
</p>
<p>'Important how?' Nick pried, trying to get more information, because he was not liking how unusually reticent Judy was being.</p>
<p>Judy only underlined, <strong>Because it's important,</strong> in answer.</p>
<p>'Happytown is a slum. It's a place overrun with the poor, the desperate, and the criminal. In other words, the very dregs of Zootopia.'</p>
<p>Judy was already scribbling on her whiteboard.</p>
<p>
  <strong>I know that. I want to know how YOU knew it so well?</strong>
</p>
<p>Nick had hoped that he would never have to reveal anything about Happytown to anyone, especially not Judy. Out of the tangled web of harried emotions writhing around within him that her question could have provoked, it was shame that was suddenly brought to the forefront. He was ten-years old all over again, and looked down upon with derision, suspicion, and disgust. He was a nobody and a nothing; just an orphan fox who had no home, no family, and no friends.</p>
<p>If the Junior Ranger Scouts had taught him to never let them see that they got to you, then Happytown had taught him to never let anyone in. If you did, they would only hurt you, abandon you, and leave you with nothing. Happytown was a place that fostered these emotions, bred the utmost despair into its inhabitants, and reveled in it.</p>
<p>'I was ten,' he began, having to force the words past his tongue, which felt as dry and as rough as sandpaper. 'Finnick found me thrown in a garbage can, like the trash I was; beaten and left for dead,' he finished, momentarily surprised at the details he had revealed. He had no intention of speaking. In fact, he had planned on standing up and walking as far away from this particular conversation as he possibly could. Instead, he was staring down at his half-eaten dinner, his appetite gone, revealing a part of his past he had never wanted to be brought into the cruel light of day and wishing for nothing more than to forget that part of his life ever existed.</p>
<p>A warm paw was suddenly laid upon his own and he resisted the urge to look up and into her violet eyes. He didn't want to see the pity he knew would be sitting there.</p>
<p>Taking a deep breath, he continued. 'No one helps you in Happytown. You are on your own and only the fittest survive. I don't know why Finnick dragged me out of the trash, but he did. He showed me the best places to scrounge for food and where to hide. We would sit and talk about how we would get out. Stupid plans to take our minds off the fact that we were cold, hungry, scared, and probably injured.' He let out a huff of air. 'And…you know what? We did.' He gave a weak chuckle. 'We did,' he repeated, as if he was still amazed that they had made it out, and he was.</p>
<p>It had been a struggle, but he had clawed his way out of that shithole, thanks to Finnick.</p>
<p>The world saw foxes as nothing but shifty, sly, untrustworthy mammals, and because of this, he decided to fully embrace this ethos, and Finnick had been his teacher.</p>
<p>Although the diminutive fennec fox was gruff, prone to violence, and anti-social, he was four years older and had been on the streets for much longer. Finnick had taught him a few different ways to hustle the mammal population, but they had discovered that Nick had a great memory for faces, as well as -if he wanted- an overabundance of charm.</p>
<p>He could make mammals trust him, even against their better instincts. They had found that this particular ability made Nick successful and their hustles had become not so much elaborate as varied.</p>
<p>Things had gone very well for them, until they had been caught selling stolen property in an alley just outside of Tundratown.</p>
<p>They had run and Nick had been faster. He hadn't meant to leave Finnick behind, but he had managed to slip through a vent that led into Tundratown. His first of what would be many trips between Sahara square and the icy district, had resulted in the loss of his one and only friend.</p>
<p>Nick had been wracked with guilt when he had turned around, only to discover that Finnick had not been right on his tail. He had gone back, but with the ZPD patrolling the area, it had been hours later until he had been able to fully retrace his steps and from there, after he had not found Finnick, returned to their home; a small alcove under a drain grate.</p>
<p>He had waited for Finnick to return, but when he had woken up the next day, Finnick was still missing and he knew that he had been arrested.</p>
<p>A month later, Finnick returned. Nick had apologized profusely and had asked what had happened, but the fennec fox had never told him how he had gotten released from jail. Finnick refused to talk about it and threatened to beat him and throw him back in the trash where Nick had been found if he ever asked again.</p>
<p>Nick had taken the threat to heart and they never spoke of it again.</p>
<p>After that, things were not quite the same between them. Nick was unable to really put his finger on what exactly had changed, only that something had. Nick had believed that Finnick was unable to forgive him for leaving him behind to be caught, but it wasn't until later, after a few very successful cons that Nick had planned, that he discovered Finnick believed he was slowing Nick down and that Finnick belonged in Happytown while Nick didn't.</p>
<p>Finnick felt that he had lived in Happytown for too long and would never be able to live amongst the glittering throng outside of the decrepit slum, but Nick had only been there two years, and if Nick could get out…</p>
<p>One day, Finnick chased him away and promised him that if he ever saw Nick in Happytown again, he would kill him.</p>
<p>Nick had left without a backward glance because he didn't want Finnick to see the tears that had streamed down his face as he left the closest mammal to family that he had.</p>
<p>A year later he went back to Happytown with a scheme -a legal scheme- and the insistence that he couldn't do it alone. Finnick was determined to keep his word, planned to at least kick Nick's ass, but Nick had grown in the year he had been gone, had some decent meals too, and had managed to take Finnick down. He had then hauled the fennec fox kicking and screaming out of Happytown.</p>
<p>Okay, their exit had been a little quieter and he may have used rope and a gag to get Finnick to leave, but he had done it and by silent agreement, they never spoke about anything to do with Happytown ever again.</p>
<p>Nick, dragged back to reality by a warm paw giving his own a comforting squeeze, quickly stood up and pulled his paw away. He immediately regretted the movement as his injured muscles screamed their displeasure and his burned skin was pulled tightly.</p>
<p>The overwhelming need to run away as far as he could from this discussion blazed within him, but… Judy would never let him get far. And really, where would he go? He was trapped in his apartment with the doe he loved, and each day it was getting harder and harder to keep his feelings and his paws to himself.</p>
<p>Taking a deep breath and ignoring the sweet, blueberry scent that he associated with Judy, he took another step away before stopping.</p>
<p>He bundled all the horrible, traumatic memories that had been dragged out and into the light of day, and banished them back into the deep, dark corner of his mind where they belonged.</p>
<p>Needing to focus on something else, he questioned why Judy had been asking him about Happytown. She had said that it was important, and she had been so distracted by this subject that she had eaten half of his cricket burger before she realized it.</p>
<p><em>Was it possible that Chief Bogo had already put her back on the ocelot case? Had she already gone back to Happytown or was she planning on going back there?</em> he wondered as thick dread creeped along his spine.</p>
<p>'Stay away from Happytown,' he growled, before turning around to face her, believing that any evidence of pity would now be obliterated from her eyes, and instead be replaced with indignation.</p>
<p>Her eyes were wide with shock before quickly narrowing in anger. He saw her mouth the word 'What?'</p>
<p>He took a step closer and loomed over her. 'Promise me that you will stay out of Happytown.'</p>
<p>A stream of words flowed from her lips too quickly for him to read.</p>
<p>Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, stomped over to the table, grabbed the white board and pen and erased the previous words. She hastily scribbled upon the board before holding it up for him to read.</p>
<p>
  <strong>I can't!</strong>
</p>
<p>'Carrots, just let it go and let Happytown lie.'</p>
<p>
  <strong>I am an Officer of the ZPD! I can't just NOT go someplace!</strong>
</p>
<p>'We've never been called there. We <em>don't</em> get called there. So, promise me that you'll never go there again,' he demanded.</p>
<p><em>Nick,</em> she began, able to easily catch his name as her emotions flittered across her face, anger warring with frustration and some other emotion he couldn't quite decipher.</p>
<p>She stopped herself and shook her head before writing on the board:</p>
<p>
  <strong>I can't promise you that.</strong>
</p>
<p>Stubbornness. That was the emotion he couldn't pick out before, but apparently it had won, because if the determined look to defy him that was written across her face was any indication, this was a battle he would not be able to win.</p>
<p>Impulsively he reached out, grasping her shoulders, and resisted the strong urge he had to shake some sense into her. Searching her face, he knew that if he pushed her, she would set about doing exactly what he wished she wouldn't.</p>
<p>Pulling her in close, he gently wrapped her in his arms. She stiffened momentarily but relaxed into his body.</p>
<p>'I just don't want you getting hurt, that's all,' he offered softly. 'So please, just be careful, okay?'</p>
<p>He pulled back, staring down at her, and found himself lost in her eyes. Violet. Such a strange colour for a bunny's eyes to be. Granted, Bonnie's eyes were the same colour, but Judy's were a more brilliant shade.</p>
<p>Mesmerized, the air between them suddenly became thicker; a tense undercurrent causing the air to crackle between them. He found himself leaning down, his eyes beginning to slip closed. He wasn't even thinking about what he was doing, he just wanted to press his lips-</p>
<p><em>What am I doing?</em> he asked himself as he reared back, placing his paw over his eyes to block out what would no doubt be her horrified reaction. 'Sorry, think I overdid it today. I'm going to go to bed,' he murmured as he stumbled away; not brave enough to even cast a quick glance over his shoulder at her.</p>
<p>Furiously, he berated himself as he slowly crawled onto the bed. Lying back so that he could stare up at the lines of pipes that ran across the ceiling. He finally closed his eyes and covered them with his forearm.</p>
<p>He was such an idiot! What had he been thinking? He'd almost… He was about to kiss her. It was bad enough that he had allowed himself to pull her into his arms, but then to lean in for a kiss!</p>
<p>There was no excuse for his actions except that the thought of losing Judy had sent him bounding across the line, that thin, intangible barrier that allowed him to function with being so close, yet so far from the doe he so desperately loved.</p>
<p>He could only hope that Judy believed his very frail lie that he had been overtired and this is what had caused him to lean forward as if to kiss her.</p>
<p>Letting out a huff of air, he found that he was grateful that he couldn't hear Judy's reaction. Did she yell at him? Was she disgusted? Was her heart beating a rapid tattoo in her chest? Had she figured out the feelings he had for her that he had tried so valiantly to hide?</p>
<p>These questions bombarded him, each more painful than the one before. However, the final one that tore through his mind: was she repulsed by him now? And it sliced to the very center of his heart and slew him where he lay.</p>
<p>He felt miserable and sick to his stomach. He would never be able to forgive himself if he had ruined everything -their friendship and their partnership- between them forever.</p>
<p>A light touch on his shoulder caused him to flinch, biting pain lighting up the nerves of his body and causing him to catch his breath and bite back a curse. Waiting for the agony to ebb away, he wished he could pretend he was already sleeping, but as that was not possible, he had no choice but to face the consequences of his actions.</p>
<p>Lifting his arm from over his eyes and opening them, he prepared himself for the worst.</p>
<p>Judy stood beside their bed, a guilty look sitting in her eyes, her nose twitching as she slowly lifted the whiteboard up for him to see it.</p>
<p>
  <strong>Please stop pushing yourself so much. Get some rest.</strong>
</p>
<p>'I'll try,' he said with a wry grin that he hoped hid the sheer sense of relief that washed over him.</p>
<p>Slowly reaching her paw out, he lay perfectly still as she touched his forehead, smoothing back his fur.</p>
<p>Surprised by the action, he stared at her in shock. Quickly she wrote, <strong>Goodnight Nick</strong> on her whiteboard before stepping away and scurrying from the room.</p>
<p>'Goodnight, Judy,' he said to her, not knowing if she had caught his words or not.</p>
<p>Closing his eyes, his heart felt fractionally lighter, because he knew that he would not be able to keep up the charade much longer. He wondered how long he would be able to pretend he wasn't completely in love with her. A week? A month? Two? It would be another month and a half before he discovered whether his hearing loss was permanent or not and he wasn't sure if he would be able to last that long without doing something stupid, like trying to kiss her again.</p>
<p>Allowing his body to relax, he found that his lie hadn't been completely untruthful; he really was tired.</p>
<p>As he drifted off to sleep, a stray thought slipped through his mind.</p>
<p>Did Judy promise to stay safe?</p>
<p>He couldn't recall…</p>
<hr/>
<p><strong>Judy</strong> flopped down on the kitchen chair, her paws resting in her lap; appetite long forgotten as she tried to process what had happened.</p>
<p><em>Nothing happened</em>, the voice of reason stated firmly in her head.</p>
<p>Except…</p>
<p>She clenched her paws together as she stared down at her lap, two spots of wetness falling upon the fabric of her jeans.</p>
<p>Throwing her head back, trying to blink away the tears before any more tried to escape, she found this to be an unsuccessful endeavour.</p>
<p>Judy had never been one to resort to tears, but ever since she had met Nick, she had found that she had shed more of them than she ever thought she was capable of producing. At this moment, she felt as if she was not in control over her heart, her mind, or any of her emotions.</p>
<p>When Nick had told her of how he knew Happytown, her heart had shattered. All she could think of was of the quiet kit who had wanted nothing more than to become a Junior Ranger Scout, and being rejected, becoming an orphan with the death of his mother and, if this were not tragic enough, banished to a slum to fight for his very survival.</p>
<p>He had won.</p>
<p>Nick had managed to fight his way free of the crushing poverty and hopelessness that permeated Happytown and its inhabitants and she could only be grateful of this.</p>
<p>He had become the fox he was today because of his determination…and Finnick.</p>
<p>She had more questions than answers as to the early life of Nick's oldest friend and saviour and she wondered if she would ever know the whole story. She was tempted to ask, but considering what her question had done to Nick, she felt that her personal curiosity was not worth the pain it would no doubt cause the fennec fox.</p>
<p>Brushing the tears away from under her eyes and fur, she took a deep breath and took her phone from where it sat on the table. Dialing the number, she waited for a minute before her mother picked up the phone and she gave her mother a grateful smile.</p>
<p>"Judy?" her mother asked in confusion, "Are you okay? You look like you've been crying."</p>
<p>Her throat tightened at her mother's words. Her parents had always been there for her, no matter how wild or crazy her goals had been. They hadn't been enthusiastic about her career choice, but they had always been there for her, and as embarrassing and odd as they were, she couldn't imagine her life without them.</p>
<p>"Did that bunny break up with you?" her father's gruff voice came from over her mother's shoulder.</p>
<p>Hysteria bubbled up inside her, but she managed to swallow it down before it burst free. "H-hi! I just wanted to apologize for earlier and thank you guys for always being there for me," she said to them earnestly.</p>
<p>"Judy, what-?" her mother began, worry thick in her voice.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry, I can't really talk, I have to get to work early, but I just wanted to make sure you guys knew how much I appreciate everything you've done for me and tell you to give everyone at home a big hug and a kiss for me."</p>
<p>"We love you too, sweetie," her mother said to her, concern still etched upon her face and thick in her voice.</p>
<p>"Well, I've got to go. Those files aren't going to transcribe themselves," she said with forced joviality.</p>
<p>"That's my girl!" her father proclaimed enthusiastically.</p>
<p>"Judy," her mother began. "Take care of yourself."</p>
<p>"I will. Goodnight. I love you," she finished as she hung up the phone.</p>
<p>Sitting alone in the kitchen, staring at her phone, her mind turned unerringly back to Nick.</p>
<p>She didn't want to think about what had happened after Nick had revealed that horrible, dark part of his past, but she seemed to have no control over her own mind.</p>
<p>Nick had been so…upset. There had been this desperate note in his voice and they had argued and then he just…</p>
<p>The intense look in his eyes froze her to the spot. She swore that there was suddenly electricity in the air and it had become so very hard to breathe.</p>
<p>Heart pounding frantically in her chest, he had leaned down, and she swore he was going to kiss her.</p>
<p>Only he hadn't.</p>
<p>Instead, he had been so exhausted that he had nearly collapsed right there on the kitchen floor.</p>
<p>Stupid, stupid, bunny.</p>
<p>As shocked as she had been at the thought of Nick kissing her, she wasn't sure if she was upset or not that this had not been his intention.</p>
<p>She should have been horrified at the thought of Nick kissing her, but…she had made no motion to stop him or to avoid him. Instead, she had stared at him, entranced by his heavy-lidded emerald-green gaze; nothing more than prey trapped in the heated stare of a dangerous predator.</p>
<p>Laying her head down upon the table, she wondered what was wrong with her.</p>
<p>Maybe her parents were right, maybe she had been spending too much time with Nick. This weekend would be good for her. A good run to clear her head and spending the day with a bunny would perhaps help her to recover some equanimity.</p>
<p>Repeating these thoughts over and over in her head, she wondered when she would be able to believe them.</p>
<p>Her mind shifted and focused on Freddy. What was she going to tell Nick about the buck? She couldn't keep avoiding the situation.</p>
<p>Normally she was so brave, charging headlong into everything openly and honestly, so why was telling Nick about her going on a date so hard?</p>
<p>Unfortunately, even though this question was asked, no answer miraculously came to mind.</p>
<p>Reluctantly sliding off her chair, she slowly made her way into the bedroom. The light from the kitchen illuminated Nick's sleeping form on the bed. She blew out a breath and walked over to him.</p>
<p>She listened for a moment to Nick's steady breathing and determined that he was asleep.</p>
<p>Making her way into the bathroom, she changed into her pajamas and brushed her teeth before re-entering the bedroom.</p>
<p>He really had managed to wear himself out, though her questions about Happytown and what she had made him re-live probably hadn't helped. The only comfort she had been able to give him was to smooth back his fur, mussed up from his arm which had been covering his eyes, and she knew that this had been wholly inadequate.</p>
<p>She had not been able to give him the promise he was looking for. She couldn't. For the reasons she had stated, but also because she couldn't shake the feeling that Happytown was the key to whatever it was that was going on.</p>
<p>What <em>it</em> was, she had no idea.</p>
<p>It had gone from a simple stakeout of a business that was possibly used as a front for money-laundering, to an pursuit over dry-cleaning that had resulted in the detonation of a warehouse rigged with explosives.</p>
<p>She had read so many case files to do with organized crime and she had never come across anything like this happening before. The explosion of the building had been designed to remove any and all evidence. Of what specifically, she couldn't even begin to speculate. Most crime organizations were okay with lost product or with lower level members being caught. Blowing up an entire building seemed like overkill, unless what they were hiding was really that bad?</p>
<p>Nick's accounts of living in Happytown were awful enough, and as hard as it was to imagine a place like this existing in Zootopia, she strongly believed that he had glossed over the truly heinous and depraved things that happened. This perhaps indicated that whatever it was that had been hidden within the warehouse was atrocious, even by Happytown standards.</p>
<p>What this could possibly be, she had no idea.</p>
<p>It was a question she knew needed to be answered, but it was probably an answer that she would have a hard time accepting.</p>
<p>Slipping between the sheets, she lay on her back for a few minutes before she turned over onto her side, facing away from Nick and his oddly intoxicating scent.</p>
<p>Closing her eyes, she huffed out her annoyance and repressing her rising guilt of going against Nick's wishes, consoled herself with the knowledge that she knew what she had to do and where she had to go to find the answers she needed.</p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <strong>Uh-oh!</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!</strong>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello all!! I hope everyone is doing well! First post of the after holiday season. Woot!<br/>Thank you to everyone for reading and leaving kuddos and comments, they mean so much to me!</p>
<p>Also, just a note, I never write anything without a reason, there is method to my madness;)</p>
<p>Anyway, I hope all of you enjoy this next chapter!</p>
<p>Dark</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="xcontrast">
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<p></p><div><p><strong>Judy</strong> stared up at the green foliage of the towering canopy that loomed overhead, her mind embroiled in bitter turmoil.</p>
<p>She had spent the rest of the week in a clandestine search, surrounded by boxes and boxes of old case files, in an attempt to glean any and all information she could regarding Happytown.</p>
<p>Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, depending on how one looked at it, there wasn't much. Most of the missing mammal reports were filed by animals that lived in other districts or from outside of Zootopia. Some had been solved either with the discovery of a body outside of Happytown -making the case a homicide- or with the missing mammal finally making their way back home. However, a large quantity of the files were still open cold cases.</p>
<p>The whole thing left a bad taste in her mouth, mostly because it only confirmed her belief that there was something dark and terrifying going on in Happytown.</p>
<p>Nick was right. Happytown was a crime-filled dangerous slum that, for the past five years, managed to drop the crime rate down to zero. Happytown had always had a low crime rate, probably because most of the crimes had gone largely unreported, but there had still been the odd report of violence, break-ins, missing mammals, and property damage.</p>
<p>The reports became less frequent until they stopped altogether, and this fact alone caused a cold finger of dread to slip down her spine.</p>
<p>Happytown had become a festering wound that was easier to ignore than treat, a place that did not exist in the eyes of the administrators. The Mayor, the ZPD, everyone seemed perfectly complicit in allowing Happytown to become home to the worst of Zootopia's cruelties as long as it kept them within its own borders.</p>
<p>The brief hope that had flickered to life within her at the beginning of her "investigation" that things had changed for the better in Happytown since Nick had lived there, died as quickly as it had been lit.</p>
<p>She had run through Happytown chasing the ocelot and not one thing she had seen in the blur of motion that cemented itself in her brain bespoke of anything but bleak and utter hopeless despair.</p>
<p>Her perusal of the files did not yield any actual evidence or small inkling as to what it was that was going on in Happytown, but the lack of <em>anything</em> is what fueled her certainty that there was indeed <em>something</em>.</p>
<p>"Judy!"</p>
<p>She nearly jumped from her skin at the sound of her name. Her head swivelled around to look behind her, the secondary object of her mind's considerable turmoil approached with a jaunty wave of his paw.</p>
<p>Thick, dark guilt filled her sinking stomach as she recalled her conversation with Nick. She had informed him that she was going out for a run. His ears had drooped slightly when he had learned that she was spending one of her days off leaving their apartment, but he had quickly shaken his head back and forth, as if to clear it from some thought that he suddenly found disagreeable. He had given her a smile and told her to enjoy herself, which had only made her feel worse.</p>
<p>Not only was she able to enjoy the freedom of a run, something that would be denied to him a few months more, but she was able to go to work, and she knew that Nick was just as anxious to return to duty as she was to have him there.</p>
<p>Nick would not have questioned her any further, she could have left and not told him about Freddy, but she felt as if she had been drowning in a sea of guilt for far too long and she had slowly written down on the whiteboard that she was meeting up with another bunny.</p>
<p>He had seemed surprised by this, as if the only bunny in Zootopia was herself, but a wariness had entered his eyes.</p>
<p>She had proceeded to write down Freddy's name, and that he was the new bike messenger that had replaced Wally, the otter.</p>
<p>This seemed to distract Nick for a moment as he questioned how long Wally had been gone, giving a comment about how he would now be out of the loop in regards to the best coffee shops in town, and the best new <em>It</em> coffee, but she felt as if he was gathering himself up, collecting his thoughts, or perhaps she was just imagining it.</p>
<p>He had then given her a wide smile and said with a wink, 'Don't do anything I wouldn't do'.</p>
<p>She had stared at him for a moment, searching his hooded gaze and although she felt relief that he seemed to be taking everything so very well, found that her throat had tightened up and tears had threatened to form in her eyes.</p>
<p>Nick had then told her to get moving if she didn't want to be late for her date, and it had rose to her lips to deny that it was a date. Only, it was a date, wasn't it?</p>
<p>Turning from Nick, who was still grinning at her, she made her way to the elevator and left Nick behind.</p>
<p>"I see you found the bench," Freddy said, interrupting her grim musings with a charming smile and Judy found that despite her gloomy mood, her lips pulled into a smile.</p>
<p>"Your text said the bench in front of the Dancing Jaguar fountain. It's kinda hard to miss," she said pointing over at the large statues of two jaguars engaged in a rather energetic dance that required the lifting of one of the large cats above the other's head.</p>
<p>"I confess," Freddy began as he glanced over at the statue, water spitting out in thin streams around the two stone figures. "I think this is my favourite fountain in the city," he said.</p>
<p>Judy gave a smile. "The Entwined Giraffes or the Spitting Elephants are mine," she admitted. "I can't seem to choose between the two. Maybe it's just the size of them, I'm not sure, but they are very impressive," she admitted.</p>
<p>"True," Freddy said slowly, indicating he was thinking over what he was about to say. "But you have to admit, the two panthers are so…graceful."</p>
<p>Judy chuckled. "There is a reason Gazelle only ever dances with tigers," she said archly.</p>
<p>"Yeah, it's too bad, 'cause you know, I've got some serious moves," he joked as he strutted a little and performed a series of swift footwork and body movements that were actually quite impressive.</p>
<p>Judy found herself relaxing and giggling before Freddy turned back to the statues, a thoughtful expression on his face. "Besides the whole 'graceful cat thing' the jaguars have going on, I think this is my favourite fountain because I wonder how the artist managed to make it." He tipped his head to the side, studying the figures. "I mean, he or she had to know the exact position to be able to balance all of that weight without having the stone crack under the pressure."</p>
<p>Judy turned her attention back to the statues, studying the fountain in a way she never had before. "Are you an artist?" she wondered curiously, thinking that it was an odd sort of question to ponder. "Perhaps an art aficionado?" she amended.</p>
<p>Freddy laughed. "Well, if you want stick bunnies, I'm your rabbit," he said with a grin and a slight shake to his head. "And I'm not an aficionado either, I just…I don't know, I suppose I always had an innate curiosity on how things work. And although there is limited mechanics in regards to the pump that cycles the water, I always find myself impressed with the amount of…engineering that goes into something you wouldn't think had anything to do with physics."</p>
<p>Surprised by this admission, she studied him as he changed his focus from the statue to her. "Why didn't you become an engineer?" she asked him curiously.</p>
<p>His light grey eyes lit up. "I couldn't imagine a more horrible job than one that forced me to spend every day cooped up in an office, chained to a desk, staring at a computer all day." He shook his head. "I know most bunnies love the safety and the repetitive monotony of their lives, but it was never for me. I love being outside, I love feeling the adrenalin pumping through my veins and the danger that comes with doing my job. And I know you must feel the exact same way or you wouldn't have joined the ZPD."</p>
<p>Judy stared at him, processing his words before she shook her head back and forth. "I only wanted to help mammals," she refuted.</p>
<p>Freddy snorted. "There are so many different ways to<em> help</em>," he began. "You could have become a doctor or a nurse. You could have become a social worker, a charity organizer, a politician. There are so many careers out there whose sole purpose is helping others, but you chose to be a cop. Much braver and more ambitious than my career path, but no different. Admit it, Judy, you like the rush," he said with a wink as he lightly tapped her nose, turned, and darted off.</p>
<p>"H-hey!" she stammered out, hoping the blush that rose in her cheeks was not visible.</p>
<p>Freddy motioned for her to follow, challenging her to catch up to him, and Judy knew herself well enough to know that she could never turn down a challenge.</p>
<p>She darted forward and Freddy ran, not fast enough to leave her behind, but quick enough that she had to push to catch up to him.</p>
<p>"That's cheating you know," she huffed when she finally caught up with him.</p>
<p>He grinned at her, "We aren't racing," he informed her, "yet," he finished with a chuckle. "This way," he said as he swerved and took a path that she would have missed had he not slid between the shrubs.</p>
<p>Following, they wove their way down the barely used trail, hopping over giant tree roots and brushing past huge leaves that sprouted from the jungle floor. She glanced up at the canopy above as the sprinklers that irrigated the Rainforest District rained down around them. Sticking to the trail, which was sheltered by the large fronds that arched over them, they managed to avoid the artificial rain.</p>
<p>"Told you I knew a place that we could run without getting soaked," Freddy shouted over his shoulder as a leaf, under the deluge falling upon it, gave way, dumping the frigid water upon Freddy's head.</p>
<p>Judy avoided the offending leaf and found herself laughing at Freddy's now sodden visage.</p>
<p>Shaking out his fur, he gave a bashful smile. "Okay," he admitted, "maybe I should have said the chances of getting soaked were a little less than on the main trails."</p>
<p>"Did you want to go back?" Judy wondered.</p>
<p>"Nope," Freddy said as he wrung out the bottom of his shirt. "It's only water, it'll dry, especially here. It's actually a little refreshing." A glint of mischief entered his eyes as he leapt for an overhead frond in an attempt to drench her.</p>
<p>Easily avoiding his half-hearted efforts, she found herself laughing joyfully, feeling as if all of her cares were, for the moment anyway, washing away with the rain.</p>
<p>"I thought we were supposed to be running," she said archly as she stayed out of his reach.</p>
<p>Freddy smirked. "True," he agreed. "Let's go. I'll show you my favourite spot."</p>
<p>He led the way again and she followed as they both broke into an easy, comfortable run.</p>
<p>"I thought the fountain was your favourite spot?" she asked.</p>
<p>"It's my favourite fountain, not my favourite spot. And I have a lot of spots that are top of my list, but this place is special."</p>
<p>"Special?" she wondered, feeling suddenly uncomfortable, like she was being given a peek into something that was private, or something that was only reserved for animals that held a significant place in his life.</p>
<p>"I found it by accident. I don't think there are many mammals, if any, that know it's there, which is strange to think considering that it was created when Zootopia was being founded."</p>
<p>His reply was an explanation, but not an answer as to why this spot was special to him. This made her suddenly uneasy. Dark suspicions suddenly creeped their way into her mind as she found herself falling slightly behind.</p>
<p>It struck her that she was alone with Freddy in what amounted to the middle of nowhere. How much did she really know about the buck? He seemed kind and funny and she had known him for a few weeks, but Mayweather had been kind and helpful in the beginning as well, only to turn around and try to have her killed.</p>
<p>She knew that it was more than possible that someone wished to finish what had been started in the warehouse of Happytown, and here she was, blindly walking into a situation that could get her killed.</p>
<p>Cresting a hill, Judy found herself staring up at a wall of wines, and Freddy standing in front of it.</p>
<p>Smiling mysteriously, Freddy pulled away some of the vines revealing a dark tunnel, which caused her stomach to dip and clench with uncertainty.</p>
<p>"We have to go through there?" she asked as Freddy chuckled.</p>
<p>"Yes, through the long scary tunnel," Freddy coaxed as he motioned for her to follow him as he entered.</p>
<p>Judy shifted her weight from one foot to the other as she wondered if she should follow. She knew she was acting paranoid and that it wasn't fair to Freddy to be casting aspersions upon him. On the other paw, a healthy dose of paranoia could save her life.</p>
<p>Looking at the tunnel in front of her, she straightened her spine<em>. You are an officer of the ZPD, Judy Hopps</em>, she scolded herself,<em> start acting like it</em>.</p><hr/>
<p><strong>Nick</strong> continued to pace back and forth in the kitchen, unable to sit still. His mind was in chaos while his heart had firmly planted itself into the very pit of his stomach. His ribs ached and his shoulder burned as he wore a proverbial hole in the stone floor of their apartment. His eyes darted to the clock only to find that time was progressing at the painfully slow rate of a sloth.</p>
<p>He had congratulated himself on being able to smile when Judy had informed him about her…date, even when it had felt like he had wanted to scream, but he had held it together, gave her a quip and waved her away.</p>
<p>The news about Freddy had been…devastating. It was the only word he could think of to describe the tumultuous feelings that had torn through him as he read the name of the buck upon the whiteboard; a buck she had been able to meet because he hadn't been at the ZPD to warn him away.</p>
<p>He was supposed to be protecting her, on the job and off, and he was failing miserably because he was stuck in their apartment, completely and utterly useless. The inevitable was slowly creeping up on him, and he was furious that he was unable to do anything to stop it.</p>
<p>Judy would not be on desk duty forever, even he would not be so selfish as to wish that upon her, and with each passing day his belief that he would return to her side became slimmer and slimmer.</p>
<p>The fact that he did not trust any other ZPD officer with Judy's safety ran parallel to the fact that he did not trust anyone else with Judy's heart.</p>
<p>Sight unseen, he hated Freddy already. Nick seethed with jealousy, rage, heartbreak, and fear. He understood all of his feelings, why he shifted along the emotional spectrum from one extreme to the other, but this didn't make him feel any better. He was at war with himself and this dichotomy of thought wasn't helping.</p>
<p>He should be happy for Judy. She had found someone and he had no right to be jealous of the buck; Nick had no claim upon her.</p>
<p>Judy was smart, beautiful, brave, loving, giving, loyal, and a vast number of other positive qualities that would take him too long to list; it was only a matter of time before a bunny asked her out on a date.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, the moment he attempted to reason with himself that this was all for the best and that he and Judy had never had a chance anyway, Jealousy would again rear its ugly head and he would rage.</p>
<p>Anger wasn't necessarily a foreign emotion for him, he did feel it, but he was usually too easy going to let anything get to him for very long, but this… He couldn't let it go and he couldn't seem to calm down. The longer Judy was gone, the more agitated he became.</p>
<p>He was in love with Judy, and no matter how wrong it was, how many times he had tried to ignore the feeling or convince himself that it would fade over time, it was still there, burning with an intense light that was nearly blinding.</p>
<p>Thrashing his tail back and forth, he flicked his eyes to the clock again, noting that she had been gone for a little over two hours.</p>
<p>Nick wanted to tell Judy how he felt.</p>
<p>He wanted to let her go.</p>
<p>It was driving him insane.</p>
<p>The worst part of all of this, besides the obvious, was that he wasn't exactly sure how he was going to react once Judy got home and walked through the door.</p>
<p>Would he be able to create a mask of interested nonchalance and be able to ask her about her date, or would he instead possessively drag her into his arms and confess his feelings for her?</p>
<p><em>Did it really matter</em>? he wondered suddenly as the icy prickle of fear danced along his spine.</p>
<p>If he said nothing, he could lose her to Freddy, but if he said something, she could be disgusted by his feelings for her and still lose her.</p>
<p>But if he said nothing, his mind circled around this thought again, he would still have his friendship with her.</p>
<p><em>And how do you feel about that?</em> he asked himself. <em>Is being </em>just friends<em> with her worth watching her have a life with someone else?</em> he wondered.</p>
<p>No answer readily came to mind, but he had a sneaking suspicion that the answer would be <em>no.</em></p>
<p>He had always been selfish, only looking out for number one, but Judy had become more important to him than <em>himself</em>.</p>
<p>And yet…</p>
<p>Again, his mind wound its way back to the crux of his situation. He was contemplating an all or none scenario where there was no in-between. He closed his eyes tightly as he stood in the center of his kitchen his thoughts continuing to battle with themselves, his emotions no better.</p>
<p><em>Am I really this selfish?</em> he asked himself as he opened his eyes and looked around his- no…<em>their</em> apartment. An apartment that was now filled with her belongings, her scent, and, worst of all, the memories of her. He could remove her things, her scent, but he couldn't get rid of<em> her</em>. And he knew in his heart, that this would remain true. Always.</p>
<p>This revelation caused him to begin to pace again. His thoughts coalesced, re-aligning themselves into some semblance of agreement.</p>
<p>He would fight for her. His stride lengthened as he quickened his pace.</p>
<p><em>And if I can't win her?</em> he asked himself, knowing he had just come to the conclusion that he wanted everything or nothing, but curious if this remained true.</p>
<p>He paused in his pacing as he contemplated the void of ever-pressing emptiness if Judy was no longer in his life.</p>
<p>Coming to a decision, he acknowledged that there was no part of him that wanted <em>nothing</em>. This meant that he would fight tooth and claw for every little piece of her he could beg, borrow, and even steal.</p><hr/>
<p><strong>Judy</strong> took a calming breath as she strode forward, moving the vines away from the tunnel, almost running right into Freddy, who had apparently come back for her after she had taken too long to follow.</p>
<p>"I know, it's creepy," he said as he took her paw and led her forward. "But it's totally worth it."</p>
<p>Judy frowned. "It's not creepy," she stated as she swiftly walked towards the small circle of light at the other end. This statement was true. "I am a bunny," she mused. "Small tunnels are kind of our thing," she added wryly.</p>
<p>Freddy broke into surprised laughter. "Touché."</p>
<p>Judy smiled, not that Freddy could see this in the dark, but she plastered the grin upon her face as she mentally readied herself for whatever lay beyond. She expected the best, but was prepared for the worst.</p>
<p>She believed that she would have the advantage, if only for a split second, if there was anyone, or multiple mammals waiting their arrival on the other side.</p>
<p>If she could manage to escape a savage panther and a building rigged with explosives, she could handle whatever was waiting for her beyond the exit.</p>
<p>She had not counted on being blinded by sunlight as they emerged out the other side. Her eyes had become used to the darkness, but as the light struck her face, she found herself holding her paw up to block out the sun, costing her any advantage.</p>
<p>Squinting and peering about, her senses alert for any signs of danger, she found no sound other than Freddy.</p>
<p>Eyes finally adjusting to the brightness of the day, she took in her surroundings.</p>
<p>Freddy had not let go of her paw, and she felt him tug at it as she looked around her in confusion.</p>
<p>She stopped moving, causing Freddy to pull up short and send a questioning look over his shoulder at her.</p>
<p>"The tunnel wasn't creepy," Judy began as she slowly took everything in, "But this, <em>this</em> is creepy," she said in a hushed voice.</p>
<p>Freddy glanced around. "It does cause your fur to stand a little on end, doesn't it?" he asked. "There is something eerie about places that should be so full of noise and laughter, but are instead so silent," he agreed as she took in the abandoned amusement park.</p>
<p>"This is almost…no, worse than a school after everyone has gone home for the day," Judy said as she turned her attention back to Freddy, wondering why he had brought her here, and if she was about to suffer some horrible fate on the grounds of this frightening, abandoned, and forgotten place.</p>
<p>"I don't know," Freddy began thoughtfully, "schools are, I think, by far worse. The spotty fluorescent lights, the dark hallways, all of those empty classrooms," he gave a mock shiver to punctuate his point before stepping over a fallen streetlight and wandering slowly down the cobbled street.</p>
<p>Unsure of what to do, Judy trailed after him, her eyes roving over various rides that were tangled within the confines of twisting vines, while others were littered with garbage, dirt and leaves. Buildings and portals, once brightly painted, were now dilapidated, corroded and in various stages of decay.</p>
<p>Even though the sun shone with joyful brightness, it felt instead as though the sun was mocking what had once been and twisting it into something unpleasant.</p>
<p>"What is this place?" she asked softly, taking in a ride with multi-coloured circular cars entrenched into the ground covered in quack grass and weeds, the cloth roof hanging down like a dirty, sun-bleached yellow and blue shroud.</p>
<p>"It used to be called Wonder Land. It's like seventy years old. Hence the really old-timey rides," he said, motioning to the train bound to the rusted, twisted tracks by creeping vines and then motioning to the 'Fun House,' a nightmare inducing structure with boarded up windows, peeling blue paint and a sagging front porch that looked as if it was about to suffer an imminent collapse. "But in its heyday, this place was<em> the</em> place to go for fun. It was a huge tourist attraction, before the real construction of Zootopia got underway and before there was even a Rainforest District."</p>
<p>Judy felt her eyes widen in surprise as she looked over the derelict carousal, the fantastical creatures, some whole, others chipped and broken, laying on the ground, grotesquely impaled by golden poles that had at one time held them in place.</p>
<p>"Why are we here?" she asked, unable to quell the slight sliver of fear that had lodged itself firmly in her gut.</p>
<p>Freddy glanced at her over his shoulder. "It's a surprise," he said with a mysterious smile. "This way, watch your step," he said as he hopped over two large beams that had collapsed upon the ground, having once held the sign for the Ferris wheel that was forever moored to the spot by the undergrowth.</p>
<p>Winding his way over the cracked and broken streets, there was a familiarity to the way he moved, as if he had long ago memorized every dip, crack and root; almost making a game of jumping, hopping and skipping his way through the destruction.</p>
<p>This ease caused Judy to relax, though only slightly. Her eyes darted around, checking darkened openings and offshoots for any movement and her ears twitched back and forth as she listened intently for any sign of danger.</p>
<p>"How are you at climbing?" Freddy suddenly asked.</p>
<p>"Climbing?" she wondered, caught off-guard by the question.</p>
<p>"I know it isn't exactly a very bunny-thing to do, but it isn't rock climbing or anything like that. More like climbing a ladder, though…a little less, monotonous."</p>
<p>Judy found herself feeling curious, though it did not completely replace her wariness.</p>
<p>"I can climb," she began slowly before giving a smirk. "Probably better than you," she offered challengingly, figuring that Freddy had probably never had cause to climb a giant ice wall.</p>
<p>Freddy's features lit up, a spark lighting his grey eyes as a grin stole across his face.</p>
<p>"Come on then, I'll race you to the top," he said as he took her paw in his and ducked beneath an overhang and through what appeared to be an old giftshop with some of the merchandise still on display, before opening a door and exiting out the back, where they wound their way through a few back alleys where the buildings were huddled so close together, she wondered what kind of mammals had frequented it.</p>
<p>"Who used to come here?" she asked, finding that her question had slipped out.</p>
<p>"Predators mostly," Freddy easily answered. "Everyone was welcome, but seventy years ago, relationships between predators and prey were still pretty…tense," he said before giving an awkward shrug. "Not that things are perfect now, but I think we pretend a little better."</p>
<p>About to dispute this, she found that she could not argue in the case of ever mammal in Zootopia. The words caught in her mouth as they emerged back into the sunlight, a huge wooden structure nearly completely overtaken by the massive trees that made up most of the canopy of the Rainforest District looming in front of them.</p>
<p>"Uh…" Freddy began with embarrassment, "You aren't afraid of heights, are you?" he wondered, looking abashed at having failed to ask a very important query regarding where he was taking her.</p>
<p>"Not particularly," she answered as her eyes traveled up and further up still until they reached the very top of the roller coaster's tracks. It was true that she didn't have any particular issue with heights, but climbing up the entirety of the scaffolding would take a great deal of time and Judy hadn't been planning on being gone for the entire day, especially after…</p>
<p>Her mind turned back towards Nick and their parting that day. The guilt came flooding back and she realized that this emotion completely consumed the wary fear that had previously ridden across her fur.</p>
<p>"Don't worry," Freddy said, taking her silence as daunted contemplation. "We don't have to climb the whole side of it. Once we hit the tracks, it's an easy assent," he informed her as he walked towards the base.</p>
<p>Blinking and shaking her head, trying to clear it from her morose thoughts, she pulled her shoulders back, determined to enjoy herself now and deal with the crushing guilt when she got home.</p>
<p>She leapt to the first crossbar, getting a firm grip upon the wood nearly hidden by the thick vines.</p>
<p>"Hey!" Freddy protested as he climbed up beside her.</p>
<p>She smiled, exhilaration filling her as she pulled ahead of Freddy, her paws and feet finding their placements as she scaled ever higher until she reached the tracks.</p>
<p>Standing upright, she helped Freddy to his feet as she caught her breath, taking in the vista before her. The amusement park was not as sad and forbidding from this vantage point. Instead of a dilapidated, miserable, empty place, it was a place full of mystery, overtaken by the jungle. More greenery and less of the rides could be seen, and it felt as if she was gazing upon some lost civilization, and it a way, she supposed she was.</p>
<p>"Come on," Freddy said, motioning with his paw. "If you think this view is good, just wait."</p>
<p>Curious, she followed him along the tracks. It was a surreal experience. If she hadn't known that she was walking several stories above the ground, she would have believed that she was taking a stroll down a set of railroad tracks that wove their way in an upward trajectory through thick leaves and hanging foliage that created an insulated tunnel.</p>
<p>Winding their way up, she was glad that this was an older roller coaster, and not one that possessed nearly vertical inclines.</p>
<p>"Almost there!" Freddy said over his shoulder as they rounded a bend, the sunlight streaming through the trees as Freddy reached out and pulled away the wall of creepers blocking whatever it was that he wanted to show her.</p>
<p>Judy felt her eyes go wide and a slight gasp escape her lips.</p>
<p>"Is that a…?" she asked, her question trailing off.</p>
<p>"A castle nearly reclaimed by the jungle with a waterfall? Yes, it is," he said with a smile and Judy felt that his words, though true, didn't quite capture the beauty she was viewing.</p>
<p>It was true that buried behind lush vines, moss, and spiralling trees, was a castle; at least the façade of one. The walls were built with white stone, the conical roofs of the fanciful turrets -three of them- at one time a bright blue, if the remnants of paint could be believed- were now more of a murky grey. But this only seemed to add to the ethereal beauty; the very jungle itself attempting to erase what had been built, and it was stunning.</p>
<p>"It's amazing," she murmured, knowing that 'amazing' wasn't the most effusive descriptor for what she was seeing, but it was the best she could come up with at the moment.</p>
<p>She found herself wishing that Nick was there with her, and this thought caused her mood to dim somewhat. <em>But I could show it to him,</em> she reasoned with herself. She knew she could find it again and it was something to look forward to when Nick was finished healing.</p>
<p>Judy smiled at the thought of his reaction, showing him -a lifelong resident of Zootopia- something that he did not know about.</p>
<p>Freddy disappeared for a moment behind the trunk of a tree before coming back with a blanket and what appeared to be a picnic basket.</p>
<p>"I brought lunch," he said with a shy smile. "If that's okay?" he wondered. "I'm sorry. I didn't think to ask if you had other plans today."</p>
<p>Judy smiled at him, a pleased warmth flowing through her at Freddy's thoughtfulness. "No, lunch sounds really good," she replied, shoving away the twinge of guilt she felt at leaving Nick on his own for longer than she had anticipated.</p>
<p><em>But it's my day off</em>, she argued with herself. Nick was by himself for far longer every day that she was at work. She attempted this reasoning and found that it did not help as much as she wished it would. In fact, it only made her feel worse because Nick being alone was the problem. She left him by himself too much during the week while she was working and now she was leaving him alone again.</p>
<p>She mentally kicked herself. She should have thought to call Finnick and asked him to keep Nick company for the day. Unfortunately, it was too late now, and truthfully, she wasn't sure if she wanted to explain the exact reason why she was not going to be around to the diminutive fox.</p>
<p>Giving these thoughts a final shove, determined to enjoy herself. She watched as Freddy spread out the blanket and motioned for her to sit. She sat down on the blue and white patchwork blanket while he sat down opposite to her and opened the basket. Riffling through the interior, he pulled out two deli sandwiches wrapped in brown paper along with two deli salads, and a small basket of blueberries.</p>
<p>"You really didn't have to do all of this," she told him truthfully.</p>
<p>"I didn't <em>have</em> to," he replied, "but I <em>wanted</em> to," he said brightly and Judy felt herself flush.</p>
<p>She thanked him as he handed her a sandwich and she carefully unwrapped it, noting that there was no mustard. She realized that during their last 'date' she had never told him that she liked mustard, but noted that if she said something now, she would sound ungrateful.</p>
<p>They fell into a comfortable silence, eating their sandwiches as they both became lost in their own thoughts, the only sound that of rushing water falling into the lagoon at the base of the castle.</p>
<p>"How does no one know this is here?" Judy finally asked, Freddy giving a slight start at the sound of her voice.</p>
<p>"It does make you wonder, doesn't it?" Freddy asked, momentarily shifting his gaze to her and back again. "How <em>can</em> an entire amusement park just sit here in the middle of the Rainforest District and have no one know its here? I've asked myself that same question over and over again. I mean, when they were creating the Rainforest District, someone had to know this was here. Maybe someone owns the land and they couldn't build on it so they built around it, I'm not sure. How do places become forgotten?" He shrugged. "I'm not sure the answer to any of those questions, but somehow things get forgotten."</p>
<p>Judy looked at the castle. "I can understand small things, but this is huge. You would think that someone in a gondola or an air balloon would notice."</p>
<p>"Maybe it just looks like jungle from overhead," Freddy said with a shrug. "Though, there are no gondola lines this far south, and the balloons never move this far south either. It's just jungle here; no residential or commercial buildings, no development at all. I believe there used to be, or at least, I've seen a couple pictures of the area when it was new. I think the district planners got rid of the roads and houses and designated it as a park of some sort, then perhaps, with no houses and no one wanting to come here anymore, they just let the jungle take over." Freddy looked over at her. "Or it might have to do with the underground tunnels."</p>
<p>"Tunnels?" she asked curiously. "Like the subway?"</p>
<p>"Well, there is the subway too, of course," Freddy began. "But Zootopia is full of underground areas and tunnels. After all, before Zootopia was a city, it was inhabited by quite a few mammals, like bunnies, badgers, moles, gophers, and others who preferred being underground as opposed to being on top of it."</p>
<p>Judy looked at Freddy thoughtfully. "Old cars aren't the only old things you are interested in, are they?"</p>
<p>Freddy rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I will admit that I have a fascination with Zootopian history."</p>
<p>He waited, apparently believing that she was going to tease him about his hobby, but she found herself intrigued instead. She had dreamed of Zootopia ever since she was eight. It had seemed like a fairy-tale place, but she had never thought about the history of it. After all, it wasn't as if it had sprouted fully formed from the ground. "So, these tunnels..." she prompted.</p>
<p>"Right! Tunnels," he said refocusing his attention. "Wonder Land was supposed to be a magical place and so the owners created this fantasy by using a series of underground tunnels that they used to transport everything around the park so that the customers did not see employees arriving for work or the delivery trucks. But if you look at the waterfall, and the lagoon it falls into, it's too low. The waterfall is flowing into a pit, not into the original moat, which means that the bottom of the moat must have collapsed and the water is flowing into the underground tunnels. The park used some of the existing tunnels, others they built. Zootopia itself is a city built upon a whole underground city that existed before it," he said with great enthusiasm.</p>
<p>Judy smiled at his excitement. "So what do these tunnels have to do with why no one knows this park is here?" she asked.</p>
<p>"Well, like I said before, the ground might be too unstable to do anything with so they just locked the doors and threw away the key," he said with a shake of his head. "There are probably records in Town Hall that tell exactly what happened and why, but I like the fact that I'm the only one who knows this is here," he paused before he added, "and now you."</p>
<p>Judy blinked in surprise. "Are you saying that you've never brought anyone else here?" she asked in shock, feeling her body turn hot and cold at this thought.</p>
<p>Freddy looked surprised by his own admission before he lifted his paw up and rubbed the back of his neck again in embarrassment -an apparent tick that she found rather endearing and one which she would be spending more time thinking about if she wasn't struggling with this revelation. "Uh…no. Actually."</p>
<p>The full import of this hit her and she felt as if she wanted to run away. Suddenly things were moving too fast.</p>
<p>"Truthfully," he began, as if sensing her abrupt shift in mood, "I hadn't planned on bringing you here when I invited you out on a run. I really was just going to show you the best trails through the jungle, but I…wanted to impress you and I couldn't think of anything else."</p>
<p>Judy blinked. "Impress me?"</p>
<p>Freddy glanced away, his discomfort at his admission obvious. "You're the 'Hero of Zootopia'," he explained. "The first and still only bunny cop in the ZPD, and you're…you're beautiful and amazing," Freddy explained softly. "I really just…wanted to see you smile."</p>
<p>"Oh," she replied, feeling her cheeks heat with a blush, knowing that her reply was completely inadequate, but she couldn't think of anything better to say. Her thoughts had scattered and she struggled with calming her franticly beating heart and figuring out how to breathe again. "You don't have to impress me," she began, Freddy giving her a skeptical look as he reached out and took her paw in his.</p>
<p>"Impress might not be the right word," Freddy offered with a small, self-depreciating smirk. "Impression might be better. I wanted to make a good impression…or any impression at all, actually," he added.</p>
<p>His words caused a knot to form in her stomach. Adrenalin was still bouncing across her fur and she felt embarrassed by his intense gaze.</p>
<p>Her emotions were in turmoil and she looked at his paw, still holding her own and forced herself to relax. She should feel flattered instead of overwhelmed about Freddy's revelation. Giving Freddy's paw a comforting squeeze, she stood. "You don't need to try to impress me or give me a good impression of you, Freddy," she told him truthfully, because he didn't. "I already told you that I'm not a hero, and I didn't solve the NightHowler incident alone. If it wasn't for Nick, I wouldn't have been able to solve it at all. In fact, I'm pretty sure I would be dead," she stated bluntly, thinking back over the situation.</p>
<p>Freddy let go of her paw and stood as well. He was quiet for a moment before asking, "How is your partner doing?"</p>
<p>Judy sighed inwardly. That was a very good question. "He's slowly recovering," she finally answered, her eyes drifting back to the castle. "I honestly don't know if his hearing will return, but his other injuries are healing," she told him. "I'd like to bring him here when he's well enough, if that's okay with you?" she asked, realizing that it was ridiculous to have to ask Freddy's permission to visit what amounted to a public space, but at the same time, she acknowledged that Freddy had informed her that this place was special to him and she didn't want to intrude.</p>
<p>Freddy seemed surprised by her request, the light in his eyes dimming slightly. "Of course," he answered softly.</p>
<p>Judy looked at him and gave him a wide smile. "Thank you," she said sincerely.</p>
<p>A pleased grin spread across his face. "I'd like to bring<em> you</em> here again," he said to her as he took a step towards her.</p>
<p>Judy glanced at the castle before looking back at the buck standing in front of her. "I'd like that," she told him with nervous apprehension as he suddenly closed the distance between them.</p>
<p>"You really are the most amazing and beautiful bunny I've ever met," Freddy said softly, his eyes searching hers, trying to gauge her reaction.</p>
<p>
        <strong>'<em>I won't give up, no I won't give in'</em></strong>
      </p>
<p>
        <strong>'<em>Till I reach the end'</em></strong>
      </p>
<p>For the second time that day Judy found herself nearly jumping out of her fur, this time because her phone started to ring. She gave Freddy an apologetic look as she dug her phone out of her pocket, not sure if she was annoyed with the interruption or thankful for it.</p>
<p>She took a step away from Freddy. "Sorry, I have to…" she pointed at the phone as she looked at the screen, her blood running cold at the name that appeared.</p>
<p>"Finnick?" she asked uneasily as she answered the phone. The fennec fox never called her, not unless he had to, which meant that there had to be something wrong. Every single horrible scenario she could come up with in regards to Nick flashed through her mind. He could have fallen and injured himself; their apartment could have been broken into; there could have been was a fire and because Nick was deaf he couldn't hear the fire alarm… "What's wrong?" she asked in apprehension, her worried gaze darting to Freddy, his expression shifting from wry to concerned.</p>
<p>"Where are you?" Finnick growled. "I'm standing in the middle of your kitchen, Nick is on the floor, half conscious, and I can't lift him."</p>
<p>Judy felt all of the blood drain from her face. "I'll be right there," she whispered, hanging up the phone and looking at Freddy. "I have to go," she told him, shock at Finnick's words slowly penetrating her mind.</p>
<p>"Is everything okay?" Freddy asked in concern.</p>
<p>"No," she said simply before shaking her head and remembering her manners. "Thank you, Freddy, for today, it was amazing."</p>
<p>A frown of worry crossed Freddy's face. "It was my pleasure," he answered.</p>
<p>Judy looked at their picnic, still spread out upon the tracks. "I'm sorry, I can't help you… I need to go now, it's Nick."</p>
<p>Freddy did not even acknowledge the picnic, his eyes never leaving her face. "Let's go," he said.</p>
<p>"You don't have to-" she began, but Freddy cut her off.</p>
<p>"Of course I do," he said as he took hold of her paw, pulling her with him as they sprinted down the tracks. "I know you are capable of taking care of yourself, but I know all the shortcuts and I can get you out of here faster than you can going on your own."</p>
<p>They didn't climb down the rollercoaster, instead, Freddy took her through zig-zagging paths and across dangerous, rickety stretches of track. Finally reaching the end, they hopped off the tracks and ducked and weaved as they ran through the abandoned park.</p>
<p>Quickly approaching the tunnel they had entered the park through, she felt her heartbeat quicken with exertion and worry.</p>
<p>She had no idea what had happened to Nick, but she was glad Finnick had found him. She wondered if Finnick had called an ambulance but shook her head. If he had, he would have told her to meet him at the hospital, which meant that he had judged Nick to not be in imminent need of medical attention.</p>
<p>Judy then mentally kicked herself. This was Finnick, he would probably never think of calling an ambulance even, if Nick needed one. Nick's stories of Happytown led her to believe that asking for help of any kind was not something either fox was comfortable with. Though Finnick had called her, so she supposed this was progress at least.</p>
<p>Shaking her head, she dislodged these thoughts. Finnick had taken care of Nick in the past and she trusted him to do what was best for him. Most likely it was her guilt of not being at home that was causing her to unfairly doubt the fennec fox.</p>
<p>Her mind shifted to what had caused Nick's collapse. He had survived the explosion and he was, from all accounts, out of any danger from and kind of infection or pneumonia, which meant that he had probably, like the other day, done too much and driven himself into a state of exhaustion.</p>
<p>Fear was quickly replaced with anger. <em>Stupid, stupid, stubborn fox,</em> she growled in her head as she exited out the other side of the tunnel and into the thick jungle.</p>
<p>"I'm afraid you won't stay dry," Freddy apologized, breaking the silence she hadn't realized had fallen between them.</p>
<p>"That's okay," she said as she leapt over thick roots and under low hanging foliage.</p>
<p>True to his word, Freddy led her through the jungle in a relatively short amount of time, the Dancing Panther fountain coming into view, her damp fur plastered to her skin, her clothing drenched.</p>
<p>Freddy pulled her to a stop, her paw somehow still tucked into his. "We can-"</p>
<p>Judy realized that Freddy intended to come with her and she cut him off, "It's okay. I can make it home from here. Thank you, truly," she gave his paw a squeeze. "I'll call you," she released his paw and ran through the park, weaving her way through the throngs of mammals enjoying the beautiful day.</p>
<p>Leaving the park behind she hailed a cab, knowing it was the most expedient way to get from the park back home.</p>
<p>The ride passed by in a blur, her anger slipping back into fear as her mind wavered with uncertainty. It was possible that there was something wrong with Nick. He had suffered from smoke inhalation and a collapsed lung along with broken ribs. What if he had tripped and broken his ribs? What if she had brought home some illness that had not affected her, but had invaded his freshly healed lungs?</p>
<p>Knowing she was being ridiculous, she couldn't shake her renewed, irrational worry. She quickly paid the cabbie and leapt from the cab as soon as it pulled up outside her apartment.</p>
<p>A swift ride down in the elevator, she opened the heavy metal doors, practically running to the kitchen where Nick was glowering at Finnick, his ears pressed tightly against his head, teeth bared in a snarl, the smaller, fennec fox glaring at Nick in fury.</p>
<p>They were speaking to each other in low, furious tones, but Judy seemed to be unable to hear what they were saying.</p>
<p>She took two steps forward and stopped in shock, wondering if it was possible that Nick's hearing had returned.</p>
<p>"-going to make things worse," Finnick snapped.</p>
<p>"How?" Nick asked. "How can things possibly get any worse?" Nick asked as he motioned around the kitchen with his arm before taking in a swift intake of breath, his eyes slamming shut in a wince of pain.</p>
<p>"Oh, I don't know, how about you falling flat on your face and breaking your ribs again? Know what can happen to if you break your ribs again?" Finnick sneered, Nick opening his eyes to look at Finnick straight in the eyes. "You land funny, they go straight through your lungs, maybe even your heart, and you are going to die, that's how things get worse."</p>
<p>"Sorry, missed that first bit," Nick said, voice dripping with ire, "can't hear you, deaf." He motioned to his ears.</p>
<p>The hope that Nick had recovered his hearing was quickly snuffed out and she felt her ears droop.</p>
<p>"Then open your damn eyes and read my lips when I'm yelling at you," Finnick snarled.</p>
<p>"Best thing about being deaf, I don't have to listen to your lectures," Nick said with a satisfied smirk.</p>
<p>Finnick grinned, but his smile contained a vicious quality to it. "True, but you know what? You don't have to deal with me, you have to deal with her," he said as he pointed a finger in her direction.</p>
<p>Nick's eyes widened as they slid to where Judy stood, ears hanging low, clothes and fur sopping wet, a look of despondence no doubt etched onto her face.</p>
<p>"Judy?" Nick asked in a raspy voice, his ears falling back against his head in distress.</p>
<p>Judy didn't know what to say. It was apparent that Nick, still sitting on the floor, had done exactly as she had imagined -pushed himself too hard and passed out from overexertion. Her anger had already drained away and even though she wished she could rekindle it, she couldn't.</p>
<p>They stared at each other, violet eyes to green, and Nick was the one who looked away first.</p>
<p>"I didn't-" Nick made to stand, but stopped moving when he shifted. Finnick glanced her way and she knew the fennec fox was pleased, going by the smug look upon his face.</p>
<p>Judy walked over to where Nick was sitting, placing a paw beneath his arm as she helped him to his feet and supported him as they made their way to their bedroom. He was obviously in a great deal of pain, but made no noise as they slowly approached the bed.</p>
<p>Once Nick was in bed, his face worn, and contrite, he softly apologized. "I'm sorry, Judy. I didn't mean to… Did you…? Were you…?"</p>
<p>Judy felt her shoulders slump. "What am I going to do with you?" she asked, not answering any of Nick's stammered, half-questions.</p>
<p>Nick searched her eyes, what he was looking for, she wasn't sure. She wasn't sure if he had understood her question, he was getting very good at lip-reading, but couldn't be sure if her mumbled words were understandable, or if he understood that her question was rhetorical.</p>
<p>Nick slowly reached out his paw and took hers into his own. "If I ruined your date, I'm sorry," he offered softly, his thumb brushing over the back of her paw.</p>
<p>"You didn't ruin it," she answered truthfully. She hadn't wanted to leave, and had enjoyed herself in Freddy's company, but she wasn't sorry that it had come to an end either.</p>
<p>"Did you have a good time?" he asked, his voice quieter now, but it contained a sharp edge.</p>
<p>Judy looked down at their paws, joined together and felt something tug within her; a pull she couldn't quite understand.</p>
<p>"I did," she answered.</p>
<p><em>And I wish that it had been you standing beside me as I gazed at the hidden beauty of the forgotten castle</em>.</p>
<p>She nearly gasped as this thought tore through her mind and stole her breath away.</p>
<p>Pulling her paw from Nick's, she mumbled something about getting changed before quickly walking to the bathroom. She dried her fur, put on her pajamas, took a steadying breath, and made her way back to the bedroom.</p>
<p>Nick's eyes glinted at her. "I believe we still have a guest," Nick stated lowly.</p>
<p>Judy glanced down at her pink flannel sleepwear with blueberry pattern before looking back up at him in confusion. His sudden shift in mood from contrition to…anger? taking her by surprise. "It's Finnick," she argued.</p>
<p>"So?" Nick questioned softly.</p>
<p>"He's our friend and he's a fox," she stated obviously.</p>
<p>"And your point?" Nick asked with a hint of growl in his voice.</p>
<p>Judy opened her mouth but slammed it shut, a shiver racing down her back at the look that Nick was giving her.</p>
<p>She thought back, wondering if she had ever seen this particular look upon Nick's face. It was one she had trouble attaching a word to, but realized that whatever it was, she had not. There had been hints or softer versions of it, but the look he was directing towards her was…</p>
<p>Hunger.</p>
<p>He looked as if he wanted nothing more than to devour her, and she instinctively knew that it wasn't the kind of hunger that had anything to do with food.</p>
<p>Judy swallowed roughly, her heart beating in her chest, her blood thrumming through her veins as she stood frozen; in thrall of <em>that look</em>.</p>
<p>He blinked, the spell broken, and Judy took a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding.</p>
<p>Grasping at some small thread of sanity, she spun on her heel and headed back to the bathroom, trying to ignore everything <em>that look</em> had done to her. She completely ignored the fact that her skin felt flushed, there was a fire running through her veins, her heartbeat was erratic, and her lungs were breathless.</p>
<p>Stomping from the bathroom, she held out her arms, her form clothed in the bathrobe he had given her for her birthday last year. It was orange with a hood that had fox ears sewn onto it. Nick had chuckled when she had opened it in confusion. "<em>Now you can look as good as me</em>," he had smirked.</p>
<p>It was the first time she had worn it in front of him, mostly because she found it oddly embarrassing.</p>
<p>"Better?" she asked.</p>
<p>Nick's eyes darkened. "No," he stated.</p>
<p>Judy's arms dropped to her sides. She had no idea what had come over him, but she was too tired and flustered to attempt to figure it out now.</p>
<p>Pointing a finger at her mouth she enunciated, "Get some rest and stop being so stubborn."</p>
<p>Not waiting for a reply, not sure if she was going to get one, she turned and exited the bedroom, Nick's darkened eyes burning a proverbial hole in the back of her skull.</p>
<p>Finnick sat at the kitchen table, a pop sitting in front of him. He looked her up and down. "Nice robe," he mused with a wicked smile.</p>
<p>"Shut up," she shot back without any heat.</p>
<p>Finnick chuckled. "I was hoping for more yelling," he observed.</p>
<p>Judy hopped up onto the chair opposite the fennec fox. "Nick's deaf. Yelling only makes him tell me that he can't hear me and that my words are jumbling together," she replied despondently as she put her forehead against the table.</p>
<p>Finnick hummed in agreement.</p>
<p>"What am I going to do with him?" she asked.</p>
<p>"Tie him to the bed," Finick quickly answered.</p>
<p>She looked up at him in surprise at his ready answer. "So very tempting," she replied with a smirk as she sat up.</p>
<p>"I'm sure he'll gladly agree if given the right…motivation," Finnick said with a grin and Judy found herself narrowing her eyes in speculation, trying to determine if there was some deeper meaning to his words.</p>
<p>Pushing this thought away with a shake of her head, she said, "Thank you, for finding him and calling me."</p>
<p>Finnick shrugged. "He's an idiot."</p>
<p>Judy chuckled. "Yes, he is," she said softly, the smile slipping from her face as guilt set in. If she had been here instead-</p>
<p>"Don't beat yourself up too much," Finnick said, almost as if he was reading her thoughts. Judy's eyes shot to his. "You're allowed a life too."</p>
<p>"I know," she replied with a sigh.</p>
<p>Finnick took a sip of his pop and they fell into a comfortable silence, his last words apparently all the comfort he was going to give her and she didn't feel like explaining herself.</p>
<p>"So, other than having to deal with the idiot in the other room, how are things?" Finnick asked.</p>
<p>Judy openly gaped at him.</p>
<p>"What?" Finnick asked with a huff.</p>
<p>"Are you…trying to engage in…small talk?" she asked in shock.</p>
<p>Finnick glared at her. "You got a problem with my company, I can leave," he said as he made a move to slide off the chair.</p>
<p>"No!" Judy said reaching out a paw to halt his progress. "You've just never-" he raised an eyebrow, "Oh come on, don't act so affronted. You don't do small talk. What's going on?"</p>
<p>Finnick settled back on his chair, his expression grim, his body language uncomfortable. "I heard you've been asking about Happytown," Finnick explained as he leaned back in his chair, his eyes falling into shadow.</p>
<p>"Nick told you," she grumbled with irritation. "Are you going to warn me to just let it go and ignore what has been going on there?" she asked in a challenging voice.</p>
<p>"I don't really care what you do, Bunny Cop," Finnick began lowly. "Thing is, you die, that stubborn moron in there won't ever recover from it."</p>
<p>"And here I thought you didn't care," Judy replied with a syrupy sweetness that was edged in steel.</p>
<p>Finnick crossed his arms over his chest and harrumphed, "I don't."</p>
<p>Judy raised an eyebrow in surprise. Whether Finnick wanted to admit it or not, he actually did care about her, at least a little. Though this did not detract from the fact that she wasn't going to drop her investigation into the reason her and Nick were nearly blown to pieces.</p>
<p>"But say if I did have a tiny bit of concern for you," Finnick began, "if only for Nick's sake," he added, "then I would tell you to stay as far away from Happytown as you can get," the fox growled.</p>
<p>Judy had already heard this from one fox, she didn't need to hear it from another. Her temper flared, but as she looked at Finnick, her mouth opening to give an angry retort, she paused as a thought struck her. She closed her mouth and smiled sweetly.</p>
<p>Finnick, sensing a sudden change in her mood, and distrusting her smile, shifted uncomfortably in his seat.</p>
<p>"You're right," she agreed.</p>
<p>Finnick blinked in shock. "I am?" he questioned.</p>
<p>"I should stay as far away from Happytown as I can," she said with a nod.</p>
<p>"You should," he affirmed, his shadowed eyes narrowing in suspicion.</p>
<p>Judy gave an insincere grin. "Well, now that that's settled, I should get some dinner on. Nick will probably be hungry. Sorry to push you out, I would ask you to stay, but I know how much you dislike salad," she said, hopping down from her chair as Finnick mirrored her movements, a look of disgust on his face.</p>
<p>"Bunnies," he grumbled with a shake of his head as he walked to the elevator. He stopped and his shoulders slumped. He glared at her over his shoulder. "You better call me before you go. And if Nick ever finds out I took you there, I'll bite your face off," he threatened before he entered the elevator and turned to face her.</p>
<p>"You really need to get a new threat, Finnick!" she shouted at him as he jumped up to pull the strap down to close the doors. "It's getting old!"</p>
<p>He scowled at her as he disappeared behind the metal doors.</p>
<p>Judy let out the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. It was risky, dragging Finnick into her sudden impromptu need to finally finish what she and Nick had started, but if Nick wanted her to stay as safe as she could, Finnick was her best option.</p>
<p>She was determined to see this through. With or without the help of the ZPD.</p><hr/>
<p>
        <strong>Whelp, I hope you all enjoyed. Yes I realize that there was not a whole lot of Nick and Judy, but quality over quantity in this chapter I guess;) and yes, there were a few shameless plugs for Disneyland/world in this chapter. And also an amusement park reference alluding to the scrapped plot of Wilde Times for Zootopia. But as I couldn't call the amusement park Wilde Times, I called it Wonder Land, because I am a Disney nerd and love me some Alice in Wonderland XD.</strong>
      </p></div></div></div>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Chapter 13</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello everyone! Next chappie up, I hope you guys enjoy it, things are going to really start rolling along XD or as Sherlock Holmes said, 'the game is afoot!' LOL</p>
<p>Thank you as always to everyone for reading, commenting and leaving kuddos, I very much appreciate it!! XD</p>
<p>Beta read by the lovely Marie Allen.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p><strong>Judy</strong> shifted nervously from foot to foot as she tried to convince herself that what she was doing needed to be done. Everything was going to be fine, and this time, no one was going to get hurt.</p>
<p>She repeated this to herself over and over again as she waited for Finnick.</p>
<p>Currently, she was standing outside of a convenience store located just across the street from the dry cleaners that she and Nick had staked out just over two months ago. True to her word, she had called Finnick when she had decided that she had given the ZPD long enough to find something -<em>anything-</em> that would be called a lead in the Happytown Bombing case; as it was now known as.</p>
<p>After spending most of the morning in the basement transcribing the files into the computer, she had come to the conclusion that she couldn't take it anymore. The ZPD was no closer to discovering the motives behind the bombing than they had been when the bomb had been detonated.</p>
<p>As any good cop knew, the longer a case remained unsolved, the harder it became to actually solve it. Time was a finite commodity right now, the solvability window narrowing by the day, and she couldn't risk it closing completely.</p>
<p>Texting Nick that she would be going out after work, she had not waited for a reply. She didn't need his permission and he could come to his own conclusions where she had gone. If he believed she was with Freddy, all the better, because then she wouldn't have to explain that she disregarded his warnings and wishes and intended to go back to Happytown, dragging Finnick along with her.</p>
<p>She felt a twinge of guilt at these thoughts. Things between her and Nick had become…strained. It was the only way she could describe it. Nick seemed on edge and there was a light in his eyes she had never seen before and one she was hard pressed to interpret.</p>
<p>He hadn't asked her about her date and she hadn't told him about it. In fact, they avoided talking about anything that had happened that day, which in turn created a heavy, amorphous cloud of things left unsaid and unexplored. </p>
<p>Giving a sigh, she pulled out her phone and checked the time. Finnick was late. She wondered if he had changed his mind or forgotten. They were supposed to meet at 5:00 pm, giving them a few hours of daylight to explore what was left of the warehouse.</p>
<p>Her phone suddenly vibrated and she felt herself start and glance back down at her screen, hoping it was a text from Finnick. Freddy's name appeared in the box and she felt her shoulders slump before shaking herself out of her disappointment. It wasn't Freddy's fault that Finick wasn't here yet. She sighed and read his message.</p>
<p>
  <strong>Hey, Judy are you busy tonight?</strong>
</p>
<p>She stared at the text, pushing away the guilt that slid through her at the fact that she had not talked to Freddy since their date. She had quickly called him and told him that Nick had exhausted himself, but that he would be fine. Freddy had expressed relief and Jud had told him that she would call him later.</p>
<p>That was four days ago.</p>
<p><em>I'm not avoiding him</em>, she pacified her conscience. She had been buried in her work. Her days had been filled with boxes and boxes of cases being transcribed into the computer and longer nights of digging through cold cases, trying to find the pattern she knew existed but couldn't seem to decipher in preparation for tonight.</p>
<p>Judy stared at her phone, knowing she should text back. Freddy <em>deserved</em> to be texted back. Her fingers hovered over the letters that were lit up on her screen.</p>
<p>Was she busy right now? Yes, yes she was. Very busy. She was busy conspiring with, if not an outright criminal, then a mammal who skirted the edges of the law, to participate in illegal activities.</p>
<p>Still, she hesitated texting Freddy back because of Nick.</p>
<p>She wanted her partner and her friend back. She wanted things between herself and Nick to go back to the way they were, but she didn't know if they could because she didn't know what was wrong.</p>
<p>And something <em>was</em> wrong.</p>
<p>Nick was acting strange. Unfortunately, she couldn't even say what it was that was different, only that it was.</p>
<p>Things between her and Nick had been…different…for a while -starting even before she had met Freddy- but now there was an awkward tension in their interactions that seemed to be exacerbated by Freddy's presence in her life. She had the distinct impression that Nick disliked Freddy on an almost visceral level, even though the two had never met and Nick had never said a bad word about Freddy.</p>
<p>It was all so confusing and frustrating and-</p>
<p>"Bunny," a smooth voice said broke through her distressing thoughts and startled her, causing her to nearly lose her grip on her phone.</p>
<p>"Finnick," she hissed in annoyance, "you're late," she accused. "And where's your van?" she asked, noticing a lack of smoke and noise.</p>
<p>"That van is my home," Finnick answered, no doubt glaring at her through his sunglasses. "There's no way I am leaving my home anywhere near the cesspool you are dragging me into."</p>
<p>Contrition filled her at his words. About to open her mouth to thank him for coming with her, he gave her a quick once-over before asking "That what you're wearing?"</p>
<p>Judy looked down at her clothing; a light blue hoodie with blue jeans. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing? I'm wearing the same thing as you!" she protested, taking in his grey hoodie and sweat pants.</p>
<p>"Your stuff looks brand new, mine's been around the block a few times. Take it off, throw it in the gutter and stomp around on it a bit."</p>
<p>"I'm not-" she bit down on her protest. She looked over at the gutter, filled with garbage, dirt, leaves, and mud.</p>
<p>Her eyes darted around. There were a few mammals walking down the street, but none were paying any attention to them. Taking a deep breath, she stepped off the curb, closed her eyes, lay down, and rolled in the gutter.</p>
<p>Standing up, she brushed the refuse off and gave Finnick a defiant look, daring him to say anything.</p>
<p>However, the diminutive fox had removed his sunglasses and was gazing at her with a look of smug satisfaction, mirth, and a hint of -dare she believe- respect?</p>
<p>He pointed up to his ear and she found herself mimicking the motion, discovering a leaf that had lodged itself in her fur. She pulled it out and let it drop to the ground.</p>
<p>"Let's get this over with," Finnick growled, his earlier smirk replaced with a scowl as he put his sunglasses back on, turned, and walked quickly down the street.</p>
<p>She followed, matching her stride to his.</p>
<p>"Thank you, for coming with me," she said as her eyes scanned the street, noticing that the closer to Happytown they were getting, the more run-down the buildings were becoming and the more desperate the mammals looked.</p>
<p>Finnick flicked a glance her way. "Just so we're clear," he began, his voice clipped and sharp. "I'm not your replacement fox. You aren't going to be dragging me into your little 'adventures' like you did with Nick. We clear?" he asked.</p>
<p>Judy gave a nod of understanding.</p>
<p>"Good. Because I'm not here for you or your little investigation. Sure, I want to know who tried to kill you and Nick. I'd like to rip their throats out. But I'd also like to keep breathing," he growled lowly. "The only reason I'm here right now is because you're Nick's girl, and if I ever knowingly let you wander back into Happytown alone and something happened to you, Nick wouldn't survive it and it's doubtful Nick would let me survive it either."</p>
<p>Judy stared at him, shocked by his grim pronouncement before her mind caught up with what he had referred to her as. "I-I'm not Nick's 'girl,'" she protested as she felt herself flush with embarrassment.</p>
<p>Finnick stopped dead on the sidewalk and gave her a look over his sunglasses that indicated that she was a liar, and a poor one at that. "Listen," he began as he started walking again. "Do I think it's weird that Nick fell in love with a bunny? Yeah. It's insane. He's a <em>fox</em>. But you know what? I don't care. You're the only one he's ever let near his heart. So, whatever. Keep lying and hiding if it makes you two feel better about being together, but when I say that Nick wouldn't survive losing you, I'm not exaggerating. He's lost too much already and I'm gonna make damn sure he doesn't lose anymore."</p>
<p>Judy opened her mouth to reply, to deny Finnick's belief that she and Nick were a couple, but instead, her pace slowed and she found herself staring at the fennec fox's back as she processed all of Finnick's assertions.</p>
<p>She swallowed roughly, her heart beating so loudly in her chest it was all she could hear.</p>
<p>Nick…was not <em>in love</em> with her, was he?</p>
<p>Her body trembled at the thought. She-</p>
<p>"Bunny!"</p>
<p>The present crashed back into her as she forcefully shoved the thought from her mind to be examined in greater detail later. Right now, she needed to focus. She didn't want to tempt fate and have Finnick's grim prediction of doom become a reality.</p>
<p>She caught up to Finnick, her eyes darting left and right, her ears twitching as she became very attuned to her surroundings, searching for any hint of danger.</p>
<p>Finnick took off his sunglasses, pulled his hood over his head, hunching down, and making himself as small as possible as he slid through the shadows of doorways and alleys.</p>
<p>Judy would have thought that this behaviour would have attracted attention and be viewed as suspicious, but as she watched the few residents that made their way down the street engage in the same sort of behaviour, she felt that walking down the street normally would have attracted more attention.</p>
<p>Pulling her own hood up and over her head, she followed closely behind Finnick, his pace becoming more erratic and stumbling. She wasn't sure if this was an affectation or if being back in Happytown was beginning to disturb him.</p>
<p>She had never once thought about how being back in Happytown would affect the diminutive fox, and she found herself suddenly stricken with guilt. It was bad enough that she was dragging Finnick -a civilian- into what had the potential to be a very dangerous situation, but she felt even worse now and was regretting her stubborn determination to come.</p>
<p>Taking a deep breath, she gave her head a slight shake. It was too late now. They were already here and if they turned back now, dragging Finnick into this mess and possibly subjecting him to past traumas would have been done for nothing.</p>
<p>"Do you know where you are going?" she hissed at him, never once asking him if he knew the exact location of the warehouse.</p>
<p>Finnick threw her an annoyed look over his shoulder as he suddenly skirted down an alley. Judy didn't protest the fact that he hadn't answered her, his look was enough to inform her that any more stupid questions would not be tolerated.</p>
<p>The fox in front of her was not Nick. Nick was smooth, charming and sly; Finnick was brash, angry, and confrontational. This little side mission of hers was not going to be like when she had blackmailed Nick into helping her. Granted, she was apparently using a different form of blackmail, but still, the surprisingly easy, oddly respectful comradery she and Nick had shared when they had first met was going to be painfully absent.</p>
<p>This realization only made her miss Nick more. She balled her fists together. It wasn't that it felt wrong that Finnick was here with her instead of Nick, but it didn't feel right either. Nick was, unfortunately, not an option, and Finnick was the only one she could think of who knew Happytown well enough that ensured possible success as well as survival.</p>
<p>Finnick stopped at the end of the darkened alley and Judy briefly wondered how it was possible that only a smattering of dim sunlight managed to filter its way between the decrepit buildings.</p>
<p>Darting across the street, they ran through the next alley and exited out the other side. Slipping through a row of dilapidated dwellings that could barely be called homes, they plunged forward, dodging past hunched figures and suspicious interactions.</p>
<p>As the 'residential area' fell away, Judy's eyes scanned the blocky warehouses, looking for a familiar outline against the sky.</p>
<p>Roving eyes settled upon the burned-out ruin of the building that had nearly claimed her life and Nick's and she found herself gasp as her feet stopped their forward motion.</p>
<p>She hadn't thought that coming back would affect her beyond seeing the building and being mildly astonished at their survival, but instead, she was frozen to the spot, struggling to take a breath. Flashes of memory tore through her mind, crippling her. She relived every single painful, fearful moment she had suffered in the brief time she had spent within the crumbling walls of the warehouse, including the moment she had believed Nick had been dead. No. The moment Nick <em>had</em> been dead.</p>
<p>Darkness was creeping in at the edges of her vision and she was surprised when she suddenly found herself on her knees.</p>
<p>A paw yanked her forward and she stared wide-eyed into Finnick's wild, dark eyes.</p>
<p>While she was being consumed by her demons, Finnick looked as if he was battling his own.</p>
<p>"Let's get this over with, Bunny," Finnick growled under his breath, his harsh words containing a gentle undertone that jolted her quivering body and tumbling emotions into action.</p>
<p>Crouching behind a barrel used for garbage, for heat, for cooking, for who knew what, it offered them some bit of cover as they observed the entrance, their eyes scanning for any other living soul and found no one.</p>
<p>This fact alone caused the fur on Judy's arms to stand up on end.</p>
<p>In the course of their surreptitious trek through Happytown to the warehouse, mammals had been clustered in groups or singularly going about their own business, but this block was eerily quiet.</p>
<p>"Finnick?" Judy whispered as the fennec fox put up his paw, halting her questions.</p>
<p>Finnick did not answer her, his ears twitching, eyes swiftly roving from side to side in anxiousness. Instinct and wily intelligence had kept Finnick alive during the time he had lived in Happpytown and she knew that he too felt the frisson of wrongness that lingered about the warehouse.</p>
<p>Finnick shook his head, turning away from the warehouse. "Sun's going down, we'll wait until it's dark and then slip across the street and into the building."</p>
<p>Judy opened her mouth to protest this action. The reason for coming to Happytown while there was still daylight was so they wouldn't have to go crawling through a structurally unstable building in the dark with only a flashlight to light the way. Not only was it dangerous, but they could miss a very important clue going about their search in such a manner.</p>
<p>Finnick silenced her objection with a dangerous look as he sat down on the ground leaning his back against the barrel.</p>
<p>Judy sat, knowing the fennec fox would explain after he gathered his thoughts.</p>
<p>"I don't like this," he said finally. "This place is too quiet. There should be half a dozen animals holed up in that building. Dangerous or not, it's shelter, and that's something that is always in steady demand."</p>
<p>Judy's eyes flicked to the warehouse and back. "How do you know there's no one in there?"</p>
<p>Finnick focused his attention back on the warehouse, his ears twitched again and she strained her own hearing, wondering if his hearing was better than hers. She continued to stare at the fennec fox, believing that he had a better idea of what to listen for.</p>
<p>"It isn't that there's no one in there that bothers me," he finally answered her question, "it's the fact that no one's<em> been</em> in there."</p>
<p>She looked again at the warehouse, wondering how he could tell. Besides the damage due to the explosion and the chain-link fence that surrounded it, the building didn't look much different than those around it. The windows had been boarded up with plywood, and the door nailed shut with two by fours.</p>
<p>"How do you know that no one's been in there?" she asked. She knew that just because the building looked boarded up and sealed didn't mean it was. After all, her and Finnick were going to be looking for any small opening in the external walls to slip inside, so she would expect that others would have done the same.</p>
<p>"Everything is still boarded up," he replied.</p>
<p>She looked at him in askance. "Just because-" she began, about to repeat the thoughts that had just filtered through her mind when he held up a paw to silence her. She looked at his paw in annoyance, getting tired of being quieted by this simple gesture.</p>
<p>"There are no police and no one to care if that building was suddenly broken into," he explained patiently. "They don't care about being sneaky or subtle. There should have been any number of looters that had gone through that place, taking anything that wasn't nailed down, and even if it was, it probably wouldn't have stopped them. The police tape wouldn't have stopped them and neither would the boards. They would have just broken them all down. But there they are, just as neat and untouched as when the cops put them there," he growled. "So, the fact that no one in this slum has gone near or in that building makes me want to turn around and march you straight out of here and never look back."</p>
<p>She levelled a challenging glare at him.</p>
<p>"But I won't because I don't think I could manage to drag you down the street and even if I could, you'd just come back by yourself, and as I have stated before, that's not an option," he eyed her as Judy felt her cheeks warm at his remembered words of Nick's apparent feelings for her. "And I can't tell Nick about this, or blackmail you with the threat of telling him either because I would be in just as much shit as you, if not more. Nick finds out I brought you here, I'm dead."</p>
<p>Judy felt her shoulders relax and she let out the breath she hadn't known she was holding. Looking over at the warehouse again, a thought struck her. "Do you think someone is watching it?" she wondered softly. "That someone being whoever rigged it with explosives in the first place?"</p>
<p>"The thought crossed my mind," he murmured under his breath.</p>
<p>"Buuuut…" she prodded believing that he had another theory bouncing around in his head.</p>
<p>He glared at her, his ears twitching again, "This is Happytown, filled with drugs, alcohol, prostitution, gangs, violence, any vice you could ever think of and a few you couldn't, mixed in with criminals, runaways, orphans, and good mammals stuck in a shitty situation, and yet this place and the surrounding area is empty of everyone. This makes me think that whatever was going on in there was so bad, that even the worst filth that ever crawled out from the gutter in this place wanted nothing to do with it. Even now."</p>
<p>Judy's gaze travelled slowly back to the warehouse, a chill running down her spine.</p>
<p>Finnick hunched over. "I don't like this, Bunny. I don't like this one fucking bit," he snarled, his fur standing up on end.</p>
<p>Judy swallowed roughly. "I don't either," she admitted softly.</p>
<p>Finnick only grunted in response.</p>
<p>They were in too deep now. They couldn't leave without going into the warehouse because she needed to know what had gone on in that building that had nearly cost her and Nick their lives.</p>
<p>Sitting in silence, each absorbed in their own thoughts, Judy focused on every single usage for the warehouse she could think of -each darker and more depraved than the last- until she felt her mind skitter into the realm of bad horror movies filled with serial killers and ghostly creatures that could not be killed.</p>
<p>Clenching her teeth in frustration, she nearly jumped when Finnick slid noiselessly to his feet, the blur of movement alerting her to his change of position.</p>
<p>"Let's get this over with," he growled as she realized that the sun had nearly set, sending long shadows across the street, draping them in concealing darkness.</p>
<p>She slowly got to her feet, but Finnick grabbed hold of her wrist, his expression shadowed. "I'm letting you know right now, this is it. This is your one and only shot at whatever you want to find there because I'm not coming back, and neither are you."</p>
<p>Judy was startled by the fierceness in his voice, but quickly nodded her head in acceptance of his terms.</p>
<p>Finnick grunted as he let go of her wrist and she fell into place just behind him.</p>
<p>She knew that as a ZPD officer, she should go first. Her duty was to protect the citizens of Zootopia, of which Finnick was one, but she knew the fennec fox would never let her. She was also aware of the fact that she was more likely to lead them into trouble than not and so let the diminutive fox lead.</p>
<p>Dashing across the street, Judy could only be thankful that the streetlights that were supposed to light the empty streets had been broken long ago. Climbing as fast as they could over the chain-link fence caused her to cringe as the sound of metal against metal reverberated throughout the night.</p>
<p>Once clear of the fence, they sidled up to the side of the building. Tracing the length of it, they found a portion of wall that had crumbled, leaving a hole big enough for her and Finnick to slip through. Quickly pulling out a flashlight she had brought for the occasion, she turned it on, the beam of light illuminating their surroundings while throwing others into further darkness.</p>
<p>Hers was the only light, Finnick giving a shake of his head when she asked him if he had brought a light. "Don't need it," he said as he stood as still as a statue, ears and nose twitching, trying to ascertain if they were really alone.</p>
<p>Judy strained her own senses, not able to detect anyone except for the fox standing beside her.</p>
<p>Finnick finally relaxed his stiffened stance and flicked a glance her way, his face and form draped in shadow. "So, what are you looking for?" he asked softly.</p>
<p>"Anything that will tell us what this building was used for. If we can find out the<em> what</em> we may be able to figure out the <em>who</em> and the <em>why."</em></p>
<p>Finnick harrumphed as slid off into the darkness. Judy let him go as she looked around her, trying to determine where in the building she was and the best place to begin her search. Looking above her, she noted the collapsed roof and knew that they were in the main area of the warehouse where the bombs had gone off. The heavy wooden beams and pieces of the corrugated tin roof still lay upon the ground, untouched by the forensics team.</p>
<p>She swung the beam of light to her right, spotting at the far end, the remnants of the porcelain sink she had dove into that had saved her life. Beside that, a warped doorway, the door blown completely off it's hinges.</p>
<p>Closing her eyes against the sight of the destruction, she valiantly pushed away the roiling, churning sea of images and emotions that flooded through her, trying to drown her beneath their fierce waves. She swore she could almost smell the scent of burnt fur and blood in the air and feel the heat of the flames that had blazed around them, trying to incinerate them.</p>
<p>Her eyes snapped open and she swung her light away from 'that room', the room where Nick had nearly died.</p>
<p><em>Come on, Judy</em>, she hissed to herself, <em>pull yourself together</em>.</p>
<p>She took a few steps towards the back door, the one that the ocelot had used to escape. Her eyes scanned the gloom and she felt her shoulders start to droop at the enormity of the task before her. The fire department, the police arson unit, and the bomb squad had all been through this place, searching the debris for clues, and they had come up empty-pawed.</p>
<p>There had been chemical residue from the bombs and enough of the devices left that they were able to piece together the type of bombs that had been used and had even traced the 'signature' of the mammal who built the bombs. Unfortunately, the bomber had been in jail for the past ten years and claimed that if his bombs had showed up, it was only because they had been stolen from where he had stashed them before he had been arrested.</p>
<p>Every lead they had seemed to find only resulted in a dead end and she didn't know why she expected to find something they hadn't.</p>
<p>Was she really that arrogant, believing that she would be able to sweep in here and find something they had missed?</p>
<p>Perhaps she was.</p>
<p>Or maybe she believed she could find something in the rubble because she had -very briefly- been in this room before it had been reduced to its present state.</p>
<p>She mentally kicked herself, wishing she had spent more time observing her surroundings during her chase with the ocelot. The bombs had been attached to the wooden support posts that had held up the roof. She recalled the back door and the sink, but mostly, she remembered the warehouse as being…empty and abandoned.</p>
<p>Much like the front office, there had been bits and pieces of refuse here and there. Wooden pallets, garbage cans, broken chairs, cardboard, scraps of paper, and a few wooden shipping crates worn with age and scattered across the concrete in no particular order.</p>
<p>"What were you hiding?" she whispered to herself. Her foggy remembrance being no help to her, as there had been no apparent reason to blow up the building. There had been nothing in it. Just another abandoned warehouse, not used for its intended purpose for many, many years…</p>
<p>She frowned.</p>
<p>"Finnick?" she asked softly into the darkness.</p>
<p>"What?" he asked, his low voice coming from somewhere to her left.</p>
<p>"There were things happening here," she began, her mind churning as she fought to grasp an ephemeral thought that was floating just beyond her reach.</p>
<p>"Obviously," he grumbled in annoyance as he walked around the edges of her flashlight beam.</p>
<p>"But I don't remember there being anything here. It was empty. Well mostly empty. There were bits and pieces of things that you would expect to in here when a company up and abandons a building or moves its operation elsewhere. Nothing was new, it was all old. Years and years old."</p>
<p>"Uh-huh," he prompted as she fought to form whatever thought was being so elusive and insubstantial into something coherent.</p>
<p>"So that means that there is something here, even though it seems like there isn't," she concluded.</p>
<p>"No shit," Finnick snapped in irritation. "Seriously, Bunny, that the best you can do?" he wondered.</p>
<p>She glared at him. "It isn't like you are doing any better."</p>
<p>"Not my job," he informed her.</p>
<p>"Then what have you been doing while you have been scampering around in the dark?" she asked him in exasperation.</p>
<p>"I don't scamper," he snarled, affronted. "I was scavenging."</p>
<p>"You're not stealing from a crime scene!" she shot back.</p>
<p>"<em>Former</em> crime scene," he corrected. "And for your information, I happen to be very good at salvaging. You know, finding those little bits and pieces of things that could be valuable.</p>
<p>"Without a flashlight I'm amazed you can even see two feet in front of your face," she huffed.</p>
<p>"Fox," he said pointing at himself. "I can see just fine."</p>
<p>Annoyed, she swung her flashlight beam around, leaving him in the dark.</p>
<p>Her mind tumbled around on the same hamster wheel, going around in circles. <em>What is here that I can't see? What was here that I didn't see? </em>Her eyes roved over the destruction feeling as though she was searching for a needle in a haystack. "A needle would be easier to find," she grumbled. At least she would <em>know</em> what she was looking for.</p>
<p>Something glinted in the dark, catching her eye. Bringing the beam back, she slowly approached a collapsed section of roof. The warped corrugated tin shone in the beam of light, but there had been something that had given off a brighter shine than the weathered metal.</p>
<p>She reached out and picked up a piece of twisted metal the size of her paw that had been pinned beneath a section of roofing. Inspecting what she had found, she determined that it looked to be a chunk of some kind of grating. The metal was not heavy-duty iron, but thinner and welded into strips, possibly forming squares, though it was hard to tell since the metal was so badly mangled.</p>
<p>"Hey, Bunny," Finnick's voice interrupted her perusal.</p>
<p>"What?" she said as she swung her flashlight beam towards the sound of Finnck's voice, accidently shining it right in his face.</p>
<p>He hissed and put up a paw to block the light from his eyes.</p>
<p>"Sorry," she mumbled, pointing the beam at the ground.</p>
<p>"Think this is important?" he asked, showing her a hunk of metal that looked as if it had been a padlock before extreme heat and pressure had deformed it.</p>
<p>She stared at the lock for a moment. "Maybe," she admitted. <em>Or it could be nothing</em>, she admitted. It could have come from the back door or it could have just been lying around. There were numerous possibilities, too many to even speculate. But…</p>
<p>Her beam of light swung around the area again as she searched her memory. <em>The wooden crates?</em> she wondered to herself. <em>Possible.</em></p>
<p>"Did you-" Finnick began, his eyes lighting upon the twisted metal in her paw and she saw him flinch.</p>
<p>"Finnick?" she wondered softly, noting his reaction. "Do you-</p>
<p>The sudden sound of metal upon metal caused her to jump, her eyes and flashlight shooting to the roof, or at least what was left of it.</p>
<p>She hit the ground hard as a warm body launched into her, knocking her off her feet.</p>
<p>A wooden beam crashed into the ground right where she had been standing.</p>
<p>Finnick lay upon her chest as she looked up at the stars visible through the gaping hole in the roof. She caught sight of something that flickered and she wrapped her arms tightly around Finnick's body, rolling out of the way and dragging the fox with her. A heavy piece of corrugated tin slammed into the ground beside her body, digging into the concrete floor beside her.</p>
<p>Finnick lay below her, trapped beneath her body, both of them staring at each other with wide eyes. She heard an ominous groaning from above them. "Time to go," she said as she leapt to her feet, grabbed Finnick's paw, jammed the hunk of metal into her pocket, and helped him to his feet.</p>
<p>Snatching her flashlight from the ground as they ran past paw in paw, they headed for the hole in the wall that they had slipped through the first time. Nearly losing her footing as she stumbled over the debris that littered the floor, they scrambled through the narrow opening and out into the cool night air.</p>
<p>They didn't stop once free of the building that now lay eerily silent behind them, as if the building itself had wanted them gone, and now that they were, it was content to sit, like a broken, hunched creature from the very deepest of dark nightmares.</p>
<p>Climbing hastily over the fence, they darted back through a maze of alleyways, narrow passages, and silent streets, stealth appearing to no longer be their main objective.</p>
<p>Judy herself would have slowed, to take stock, take a breath, and gather her thoughts, but Finnick was like a creature possessed, running as if being chased by something menacing, dangerous, and horrible.</p>
<p>At one point, a group of wolves with matted hair and reddened eyes slunk from the shadows, obstructing their path, but even this did not slow Finnick's pace. Dashing between the legs of one of the wolves, Judy was forced to follow, sliding on something she didn't wish to identify, knocking into the wolf, and catching him off balance, causing him to careen into another.</p>
<p>Thankfully, the wolves did not follow, perhaps deciding to go in search of more easily attainable prey.</p>
<p>Finally free of Happytown, Judy believed that Finnick would pause or slow his frantic pace, but he did not. Even when she protested and attempted to remove her paw from his he did not slacken his stride until they rounded a corner and she spotted his van, parked against a curb, a parking ticket wedged beneath the windshield wiper.</p>
<p>Heading straight for the back of the van, Finnick opened the back doors and yanked her inside, releasing her paw to close the doors quickly behind her.</p>
<p>"Finnick?" she asked him gently, a small light illuminating the cluttered interior.</p>
<p>The fennec fox was panting, his body vibrating, with nerves, with adrenalin, she wasn't sure, but it was obvious he was in distress. She reached out a paw and he flinched away. Quickly pulling her paw back, she knelt upon the carpeted interior of the van and slowly inched forward.</p>
<p>"Are you okay?" she asked softly, not trying to touch him this time, and instead just sitting close enough to him that he could reach her if he felt the need to do so.</p>
<p>He closed his eyes and jammed his paw into the pocket of his hoodie. Opening his eyes, he pulled out the padlock and shoved it into her paws.</p>
<p>She stared at the lock that lay in her paws before looking back at Finnick, searching his eyes, which were dark, bleak, and tormented.</p>
<p>The padlock and chunk of metal meant something to him, and she didn't want to push or pry, knowing that Finnick was a very private mammal, and normally, she would respect his privacy, and his distressed state, but this was important.</p>
<p>She took the twisted metal object from her own hoodie pocket and placed both objects down on the carpet before settling against the side of the van. She could wait; all night if she had to.</p>
<p>Closing her eyes, she felt the burn of her own adrenalin recede, leaving her feeling exhausted.</p>
<p>She must have fallen asleep, she wasn't sure for how long, but the sound of Finnick's voice caused her to jump and look around her in confusion, forgetting where she was for a moment.</p>
<p>A red blanket that had seen better days was draped across her body and she wrapped it more securely around herself as she sat up from where she had fallen over.</p>
<p>"A cage," Finnick finally offered into the silence that had settled over them as she had waited for him to say something.</p>
<p>The gentle fog that had settled over her brain cleared and she clamped her mouth shut on the flow of questions that suddenly threatened to burst forth. He would explain, or not, but it was enough that she could deduce that the twisted metal had formed the bars of a cage, and the padlock had been used to lock it. It made sense to her. She didn't understand the significance of any of it, but it meant something to Finnick; something dark and horrible.</p>
<p>Finnick shifted his eyes away from the distressing objects that lay untouched upon the floor between them and stared very hard at the bunched-up blanket secured around her shoulders.</p>
<p>"There are so many ways to get into debt or into trouble with very, very bad mammals," Finnick explained. "And eventually, they collect."</p>
<p>Judy felt a frisson of foreboding slip down her spine. She didn't know where this story was going, but she had a strong suspicion that she didn't want to hear it. Even more distressing than this notion was the intense belief that she shouldn't make Finnick re-live whatever it was that he was about to reveal.</p>
<p>Selfishly, she remained silent, trying to assuage her beleaguered conscience by convincing herself that by talking about what had happened in the past, it may help dispel the unrelenting horror that was writhing around in Finnick's dark eyes.</p>
<p>"I stole something I shouldn't have from someone I shouldn't have crossed. I didn't have that something anymore, didn't know where it was, no idea how to get it back, or the monetary funds to compensate the owner for its loss. I ended up being snatched off the street, thrown in a cage and forced to 'pay off' the debt." Finnick shook his head, his voice thick with bitterness, disgust, and torment. "You'd be amazed at what mammals will bet on. Mammal fighting rings are spread out throughout Zootopia, but Happytown breeds a special kind of sport. Unlike the rest of Zootopia, where the matches are fought between willing mammals with referees and rules, in Happytown, the match lasts until one animal is left standing. As in, one of them is probably dead and if not dead, wishes they were. If you make the mammal who you owed your 'debt' to enough money, they might let you go, if you die, well, at least you were entertaining."</p>
<p>Judy felt her paws cover her mouth in horror. She hadn't known what Finnick would reveal, but it was so much worse than anything she could have ever imagined. Her mind struggled and failed to understand how such a sick and twisted form of entertainment could exist, and how the ZPD had utterly failed the citizens living in Happytown.</p>
<p>"I'm so sorry," she whispered, knowing that her words were cold comfort against the horrors that he had endured and for her dragging him back through his most traumatizing moments for her own selfish reasons.</p>
<p>Her voice seemed to snap Finnick out of whatever private torment he was reliving, causing him to narrow his eyes. "Nothing to apologize for. You weren't even born yet, Bunny," he snapped. "Or if you were, you were still in diapers. Either way, not your fault, not your problem." He shook himself, his fur, which had continued to stand on end, fell back against his skin.</p>
<p>Again, Judy clamped her mouth shut against the flood of questions that wanted to burst forth. She remained silent, waiting to see if Finnick would continue or if he was finished sharing this particular dark chapter of his past.</p>
<p>"I survived," he ground out, his eyes shifting around the van before locking with hers, a dare or challenge in his brown depths.</p>
<p>She wanted to look away, but she met his eyes unwaveringly. She wasn't there to act as judge or jury; she wasn't even a cop tonight. But her heart hurt for him and for so many other mammals who had suffered unspeakable crimes, or were forced to perpetrate them.</p>
<p>Swallowing roughly, she wet her lips and gathered the shattered remnants of her heart and mind. She couldn't do anything about the past, but she could help the residents of Happytown <em>now. </em>Unfortunately, she couldn't do it alone. "Do you think that these came from a cage?" she asked quietly, knowing that it was possible that Finnick would not answer her question.</p>
<p>Finnick looked down at the two objects scrounged from the crime scene. He shrugged, his face impassive.</p>
<p>She picked up the piece of what may have come from a cage and studied it. If her memory was correct, she didn't recall any cages, but what-</p>
<p>Her eyes widened in shock. "The crates," she said with a strangled whisper. "The wooden crates had holes drilled in them." She felt the blood drain from her face, suddenly light-headed.</p>
<p>"Hey, no fainting in my van," Finnick growled, his sudden grip on her arm causing her vision to snap back into focus.</p>
<p>She looked at Finnick in horror. "What if there were mammals in those cages-"</p>
<p>"There weren't," Finnick interrupted.</p>
<p>"But how-"</p>
<p>"You already know the answer to that, Bunny," he cut her off again.</p>
<p>Judy drew air into her lungs as she tried to get her body to stop shaking. "The techs would have found something," she affirmed, taking another deep breath.</p>
<p>"And they found nothing," Finnick agreed.</p>
<p>"They found nothing," she reaffirmed. Forensics had gone over the entire warehouse and no mammal remains had been found. If there had been cages, they had been empty. Judy felt her shoulders droop with relief. She hadn't unknowingly caused the deaths of mammals being held against their will in cages hidden away in packing crates.</p>
<p>"We have to stop them," she said with determination.</p>
<p>"Uh-uh. There is no 'we', remember? I'm out. And if you were smart, and I don't think you are, you'd be out, too."</p>
<p>"Finnick-"</p>
<p>"Blah, blah, I get it. It's your job, and either you're going to solve it or end up dead. I'd bet on the latter. But think on this," he pointed to the padlock and piece of cage. "This stuff has been going on in Happytown since before you were born, before <em>I</em> was born. It's nothing new."</p>
<p>"It needs to stop," she bit out fiercely.</p>
<p>Finnick glared at her. "Seriously, I thought you were the smart one."</p>
<p>"One more dumb bunny quip, Finnick, and I'll-"</p>
<p>"It's nothing <em>new</em>," he emphasized slowly.</p>
<p>Her mind finally caught up with what Finnick was implying. "Whatever was going on in the warehouse is different."</p>
<p>"And whatever it is-" Finnick began, his eyes no longer able meet her own.</p>
<p>"-is so much worse," she finished in a strangled whisper.</p>
<p>Finnick met her gaze again, his eyes bleak and haunted.</p>
<p>She felt as if she was going to be ill.</p>
<p>"I'll drive you home," Finnick offered, breaking the silence that lay between them as he crawled into the front seat.</p>
<p>"Thanks," she said softly. She shrugged out of the blanket and followed, settling into the passenger seat as Finnick started the van. They rode in silence all the way back to her apartment, each too consumed by their own thoughts to offer up any pleasantries.</p>
<p>By the time she opened the elevator doors into her darkened apartment, she was mentally and physically drained. She wanted to crawl into bed and sleep until next week. Maybe then she would be able to process every horrific, nightmarish scenario that bounced through her mind and balance it with evidence based on rational, logical thought.</p>
<p>The light in the kitchen suddenly flared to life and Judy jumped in fright at the visage of Nick, sitting at the kitchen table in the dark.</p>
<p>Her frayed nerves were already on edge, but her waning reserves of adrenalin suddenly burst to life as she clasped at her chest right above her frantically beating heart.</p>
<p>"Sweet cheese and crackers, Nick!" she gasped out. "You nearly scared me to death!" she complained. "What are you…? Why are you sitting in the dark?" she asked him as he slowly stood.</p>
<p>"Where were you?"</p>
<p>Judy felt her ears drop. She hadn't thought about what she was going to tell Nick when she finally got home. Truthfully, she had thought he would be sleeping and she would just… happily avoid any discussion on where she had been.</p>
<p>Only, she had been gone for so much longer than she had thought she would be and judging by the look etched into Nick's face, he had been worried.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," she apologized, enunciating her words so that Nick, who had gotten quite good at reading lips, could understand her. He slid out of his chair and walked to where she was standing. "I didn't mean to worry you." Which was why she didn't want to tell him where she had been. It would just make things so much worse.</p>
<p>"Sorry?" he asked, as he continued to walk forward, causing her to take a step back, followed by another, and another. His voice was biting and filled with barely suppressed…not anger, but something else. Whatever emotion he was feeling, it was churning around and warring with fury and anxiety.</p>
<p>He backed her up until she bumped up against the kitchen wall.</p>
<p>"What happened?" he asked with a soft growl in his voice.</p>
<p>She felt confused for a moment before she remembered her disheveled appearance. She had literally rolled around in the gutter a few hours earlier, not to mention the soot from the floor of the warehouse when her and Finnick had crashed to the ground, avoiding falling pieces of roof.</p>
<p>"I-"</p>
<p>"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice gentling.</p>
<p>"Yes, I'm fine," she assured him. "I fell in a gutter," she explained, failing to add that it had been purposeful.</p>
<p>Nick's eyes narrowed as he reached out and lifted her chin up with a finger, inspecting her face before dropping his paw. "You fell?"</p>
<p>"Yes, Nick, I fell," she stated as Nick's eyes narrowed even further as he weighed the truth of her words.</p>
<p>"I'm going to kill him," Nick promised as he turned away.</p>
<p>Quickly grabbing Nick's paw, she pulled him around to face her. "It wasn't his fault," she defended, surprised that he had so quickly figured out where she had gone and who she had been with. "It was mine," she admitted, still clutching at his arm. "Finnick-"</p>
<p>"Finnick?" Nick questioned, shock and confusion replacing his earlier anger. "I thought you were with Freddy."</p>
<p>"Freddy?" she asked in bewilderment before she realized that Nick <em>had</em> thought she had been out with Freddy, and because she had told him she had been with Finnick, it wouldn't be long before he figured out that-</p>
<p>"You were with Finnick?" Nick asked in a stunned whisper and she bit her lip guiltily, bracing herself for Nick's anger. "<em>Finnick</em> is the one you've been sneaking around with?" he asked in disbelief.</p>
<p>She winced at his accusation, but gave a curt nod. "I knew you wouldn't like it, but-"</p>
<p>Nick quickly took a step closer, pressing her up against the wall with his body causing her heart to beat thunderously in her chest and her skin to suddenly feel as if it were aflame.</p>
<p>"Nick-" she began, placing her paw on his chest, and giving a light push, not really knowing what she was going to say, but needing to put some space between them as she was finding it hard to breathe.</p>
<p>He moved back slightly, his face filled with pain. "It makes sense," Nick intoned smoothly as he brushed his fingers gently across her cheek, sending tiny shivers across her skin.</p>
<p>No. Nothing was making sense. She had completely lost the thread of their conversation and Nick was standing much too close. His fingers, scraping themselves across the fur on her cheek, was causing her knees to feel weak, her mind to become fuzzy, and her skin to burn.</p>
<p>"After I was hurt, you two were thrown into each other's company, and…" Nick gave a sudden bark of angry laughter. "I can't believe I didn't see it sooner," he muttered, almost to himself.</p>
<p>She frowned at his words. Although it was true that she had seen more of Finnick than she ever had before Nick had been injured, she didn't think that she had been spending <em>that</em> much time with him. "We-" she began, about to refute this particular observation, but her words were rendered useless when Nick closed his eyes, stepped closer to her and leaned his forehead against the cool stone wall, to bury his nose in her neck.</p>
<p>"I can't believe you both thought you could hide what was going on from me."</p>
<p>Judy felt her ears droop at the wounded hurt in his voice. She had known that if Nick found out about her trip to Happytown he would be angry, but she had never believed that it would actually pain him.</p>
<p>"His scent is all over you," he whispered dangerously as he lifted his head and searched her eyes.</p>
<p>"What?!" she asked, completely blindsided by his observation. It was true that Finnick's scent -a scent that was not discernible to her beneath the odors she had picked up in Happytown- had most likely been transferred to her clothing from when his blanket had been draped across her body as she had slept and when they had saved each other's lives in the warehouse, but she had no idea why-</p>
<p>Her thoughts ground to a halt when Nick placed his paws against the wall on either side of her head, his eyes blazing with green fire. "But you're right, I don't like it," he growled.</p>
<p>Emerald eyes borrowing into violet, Judy finally was able to decipher the <em>something </em>that had been lately found -in varying degrees- burning in Nick gaze: jealousy.</p>
<p>Nick was jealous…of Finnick<em>?</em></p>
<p>Judy realized then that the hurt in Nick's voice and demeanor had to do with his belief that she was replacing him with Finnick as her choice of companion in mystery-solving crime.</p>
<p>"Nick, I'm not-"</p>
<p>"Don't lie," he snarled miserably as he closed his eyes again. "I understand why you thought you had to sneak around and make up Freddy-"</p>
<p>"Make up Freddy?" she interrupted in confusion, but Nick couldn't hear or see her spoken question and he continued.</p>
<p>"A fox and a bunny, what would everyone think?" he wondered bitterly.</p>
<p>Judy stared at Nick's face, etched with anguish as she was struck by the sudden suspicion that they were somehow having two completely different conversations.</p>
<p>"But, how could he not fall for you?" he whispered. "I just never thought that you could ever feel that way about a fox. I thought, hoped, that just maybe you and… I just…" he choked on his words. "Do you love him?" he asked brokenly as he finally opened his eyes, patiently awaiting her answer; willing to accept whatever she her answer was.</p>
<p>Her mind reeling, she tried to understand what was going on.</p>
<p>She replayed their entire broken conversation from the beginning and she gaped at Nick in growing horror.</p>
<p>Her and <em>Finnick</em>?!</p>
<p>Besides the fact that they were completely different species, she and Finnick were <em>friends;</em> and barely even that. Their relationship had been borne from the regard for which they both held Nick, and the need he had for both of them in his life. The fact that Nick could think for even a moment that-</p>
<p>Her eyes widened in remembrance of Finnick's improbable claim about the nature of Nick's feelings for her. The belief that Finnick -a fox- could fall in love with her -a bunny- was not an impossible notion for Nick because…</p>
<p>Nick <em>was</em> in love with her.</p>
<p>Her body went cold as wave after wave of startled realization crashed over her. As she was processing this startling revelation, Nick suddenly reared back as if he had been struck.</p>
<p>Looking up at him in surprise, Nick held his paws out, like he was warding off a blow.</p>
<p>"Pretend I never said anything," Nick said with a shake of his head, misery lacing his words. "I didn't mean… Of <em>course</em> you and Finnick aren't…. A fox and a-a bunny is just-"</p>
<p>"Nick!" she shouted at him, but he wasn't looking at her.</p>
<p>"-wrong," he finished. "Disgusting. Repulsive." He was dragging his paw across his eyes.</p>
<p>His words, now dripping with self-loathing, prompted her into action. Leaping forward, she tried to gain his attention by grabbing his forearm, but Nick pulled away from her touch as if it burned.</p>
<p>"Judy, just…" he shook his head wildly back and forth as he backed away from her.</p>
<p>"Nick! Stop! Please! You're going to-" she shouted at him, but he had already whirled around, striding towards the elevator, "hurt yourself," she finished lamely as she got one last look at Nick, his face drawn into lines of desolation before the elevator doors closed.</p>
<p>Standing in the sudden silence of the kitchen, she stared hard at the elevator doors for a moment before running to them. Her fingers paused over the button before she allowed her arm to fall back to her side.</p>
<p>Nick knew the city far better than she did and if he didn't want to be found, and she suspected he really, really didn't want to face her at the moment, she would never be able to find him. All she could do was hope was that Nick took care of himself and came home sooner rather than later.</p>
<p>Heart heavy in her chest, she reluctantly turned around and shuffled back into the kitchen.</p>
<p>Walking to the wall she had only moments before been pushed up against, she leaned her back against it and slid to the ground. Her emotions were in turmoil and her heart felt as if it was going to shatter with each erratic beat.</p>
<p>Blankly staring down at her phone, worry lay thick in her stomach as she wondered if Nick was okay, and if he was ever coming back. She knew it was stupid to even contemplate this because where else would he go? This was his apartment. This is where he lived. He couldn't just up and disappear. And yet, she couldn't seem to dismiss the possibility that Nick would suddenly exit her life as quickly as he had entered it.</p>
<p>She could never have predicted that her first meeting with Nick would have developed into a partnership and a friendship. He had been so infuriating, and yet, there was some part of her that felt instantly drawn to him. She could acknowledge that he had been the best mammal to help her on her case, but it was more than that. He was smart, funny, charming, and he had chosen to let down his walls for her. That had been...humbling.</p>
<p>Nick had been by her side ever since and she couldn't imagine her life without him.</p>
<p>Blinking rapidly at the sudden moistness pricking her eyes, she focused on her phone and scrolled through her contacts, selecting Finnick's name.</p>
<p><strong>Nick might be heading your way</strong>. She texted, hoping that Nick would seek out his best friend.</p>
<p>She didn't know if she was going to get a reply or not. The fennec fox was probably already in bed. Though, it was possible he was still awake and just as distraught as she was; for vastly different reasons.</p>
<p>Her phone suddenly lit up and vibrated in her paws.</p>
<p><em><strong>U really couldn't keep ur mouth shut could u?</strong></em> Finnick texted and she could almost hear the snarl of his voice in her head.</p>
<p>Judy glared at Finnick's words.</p>
<p><strong>He was waiting for me when I walked in. </strong>She defended.</p>
<p><em><strong>And u couldn't think of some excuse or do u just want me dead? </strong></em>He shot back.</p>
<p><strong>He thought we were sneaking around behind his back. </strong>She explained patiently.</p>
<p><em><strong>We were. </strong></em>He bit back.</p>
<p>Her fingers hovered over the screen as she felt herself flush with embarrassment.<strong> Romantically. </strong>She texted.</p>
<p><em><strong>Fuck, no! </strong></em>He exclaimed in horror.</p>
<p><strong>He ran out after he realized we weren't. </strong>She told him.</p>
<p><em><strong>Of course he did</strong></em><strong>. </strong>He grumbled.</p>
<p><strong>Please text me if he shows up. </strong>She begged.</p>
<p><em><strong>He won't. </strong></em>He told her bluntly.</p>
<p>Her heart dropped into the pit of her stomach and she swallowed roughly. <strong>I know.</strong></p>
<p>She felt as if she couldn't breathe. Nick needed to come back. She needed to see him again. She needed to tell him that whenever she was with him, it felt as if she was…</p>
<p>Her mind skittered away from this thought and she closed her eyes, wrenching her mind back to confront what she seemed to be so determined to avoid.</p>
<p>…home.</p>
<p>Nick felt like home. He was her warmth, her companion and her comfort, but he was so much more than that; had become so much more than<em> just</em> a friend. He set her blood on fire, her skin became electric and her heart pounded furiously in her chest when he was near.</p>
<p>Swallowing roughly, she looked at her phone and read the back and forth of her conversation with Finnick.</p>
<p><strong>I love him. </strong>She admitted to the fennec fox.</p>
<p>The reply was almost instant<em><strong>. Of course u do. Stupid bunny.</strong></em></p>
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    <strong>YAY! admission of feelings! But don't worry, I'm not going to make things too easy for our two love birds. XD</strong>
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<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Chapter 14</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>A little...okay a lot late in updating this. LOL I blame fanfic, I've been on a Miraculous Ladybug kick for reasons unknown and have read so many! But this chapter is up now and I hope everyone enjoys.</p>
<p>Thank you to everyone who has been reading and leaving Kuddos and comments. Much love to you all!<br/>Beta read by the lovely Marie Allen!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p><strong>He</strong> stood in front of a mirror, adjusting his tie, and giving only a cursory glance to the weasel that shifted nervously from foot to foot awaiting his judgement on the news he had just given.</p>
      <p>"So," he began, brushing imaginary fuzz from the lapels of his suit, "Gerald, you are telling me that Judy Hopps, the ZPD officer who -according to our inside informant- is supposed to still be on desk duty, was snooping around the warehouse?" he asked, a deadly purr in voice.</p>
      <p>Gerald flinched at the question, but nodded. "Yes, Sir. Mr. Kahn, Sir."</p>
      <p>"I see," he mused. "And how was it that you let her and-" he paused.</p>
      <p>"A fox," Gerald supplied.</p>
      <p>"Officer Wilde," he continued.</p>
      <p>"Not Wilde," Gerald interrupted.</p>
      <p>"A different fox?" he inquired, knowing that Nick Wilde was the only fox in the ZPD. "One of ours?" he asked smoothly.</p>
      <p>"N-no," Gerald quickly replied. "Though he looks familiar. I think I've seen him somewhere before."</p>
      <p>"So, he's probably from Happytown," he stated.</p>
      <p>Gerald gave a shrug. "Hard to say. Small, big ears. Fennec fox. Don't have many of them around."</p>
      <p>He made a contemplative sound as he controlled his temper. "Regardless of what kind of fox and whence he came, he and Officer Hopps both entered<em> and</em> exited the warehouse. It is the latter action that infuriates me more," he growled as he turned and faced the weasel who was cringing, his tail tucked between his legs.</p>
      <p>"I tried to kill them, make it look like an accident, but they got away," Gerald defended in a high-pitched whimper.</p>
      <p>He straightened his cuffs. "Find the fox, discover what he knows and eliminate him. It shouldn't be too hard to find him, even for you. And realize that the only reason I am keeping you alive is you can identify the fox. But be warned. Fail me again and death will be a sweet mercy in comparison to what you will suffer."</p>
      <p>Gerald's body shook with fear, but the weasel gave a nod of understanding. "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," he said as he backed himself from the room.</p>
      <p>"Clawson!" he called after the weasel had left.</p>
      <p>The Timber wolf entered through the same door the weasel had exited, his black suit immaculate as always, awaiting his orders.</p>
      <p>"I want that warehouse razed to the ground by end of day tomorrow," he stated.</p>
      <p>"Yes, sir," he said with a nod. "Anything else?"</p>
      <p>The big cat studied his claws, his mind calculating his need to get rid of Officers Hopps and Wilde with his need for caution.</p>
      <p>He knew what had been left in the warehouse when it had exploded, but was it enough for her to piece together what had been stored in there only hours earlier? He would normally scoff at the idea that anything resembling a clue had managed to survive the blast, but he had not gotten into the position he was in by being reckless.</p>
      <p>He erred on the side of caution.</p>
      <p>"I want a close eye kept on Officer Hopps. If there is a chance to remove her in a way that will not cause suspicion, I want it done."</p>
      <p>"Understood, sir," Clawson said with a nod. "And Wilde?"</p>
      <p>"Officer Hopps is the greater threat at the moment. If there is opportunity to remove two mammals with one stone, take it, otherwise leave him be."</p>
      <p>"Yes, sir," he said in understanding.</p>
      <p>"You are dismissed," he said with a quick flick of his paw as he turned and walked over to the window.</p>
      <p>He heard the door click as Clawson closed it behind him.</p>
      <p>Admiring his dapper appearance for a moment, he shifted his focus to the glittering lights of the city that was spread out before him. A beautiful ripe fruit that masked the rot that spread out from its very core.</p>
      <p>He gave a self-satisfied smile.</p>
      <p>So many creatures fed on this city, eating from the delicate flesh that was presented to them, but what they didn't realize, was that while they feasted, others gorged themselves on the bruised and decaying parts of the fruit that no one else wanted, and they thrived.</p>
      <p>He liked to think that he had a healthy appreciation for both meals and he intended to keep it that way.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p><strong>Judy</strong> looked up at the box of files located on the top shelf high above her head. Officer Growle had lumbered upstairs ten minutes ago leaving her alone in the basement with her swirling thoughts and a ton of files to transcribe.</p>
      <p>Determined to ignore the persistent worry over Nick's wellbeing and all thoughts and feelings to do with the troublesome fox, she decided she wasn't going to wait around until Officer Growle returned to ask him to help her get the box down.</p>
      <p>Repressing a huff of annoyance, she began to climb the metal shelving unit. The box she required was six shelves up, but she could probably stretch and pull it down from the third shelf. Unfortunately, she and the box were much heavier than she had anticipated and when she struggled to pull it from the shelf, she felt the entire unit begin to tip.</p>
      <p>Fear skittered down her spine as she began to fall backwards, boxes sliding forward and to the ground, she stupidly clung to the shelf and closed her eyes, waiting for the inevitability of being crushed by the heavy metal unit.</p>
      <p>Her descent was suddenly halted as the shelf was returned to its former position with a grunt of effort.</p>
      <p>Slowly looking to her right, she was confronted by the large presence of Officer Growle, looking at the shelf and the scattered boxes, folders, and papers on the floor with a deep scowl on his face before he turned it on her.</p>
      <p>She couldn't even manage a weak smile. "Thank you," she whispered.</p>
      <p>"You need to be more careful, could have been really hurt, or even killed," he stated.</p>
      <p>"I know," she replied as she climbed down.</p>
      <p>He gave a grunt. "Maybe you should go take a break. You can clean this up when you get back."</p>
      <p>"Yeah. Okay," she acquiesced as she turned and placed a foot on the stair.</p>
      <p>"And, Hopps," he began as she looked over her shoulder at the old bear, his face grim. "Watch yourself. Next time I might not be there to save you."</p>
      <p>Giving a nod of understanding, she apologized for the mess she had made and thanked him for saving her again before heading upstairs.</p>
      <p>Feeling dejected and defeated, she made her way over to Clawhauser's desk.</p>
      <p>"Hey, Judy!" the cheetah greeted pleasantly.</p>
      <p>"Hey," she said as she reached onto his desk and absently took a doughnut from the box that was sitting on it.</p>
      <p>"You need something?" he wondered curiously.</p>
      <p>"No," she answered, taking a bite of the yellow frosted pastry. "I'm just taking a break," she admitted with a sigh. "I nearly pulled down an entire shelf of case files and got myself killed."</p>
      <p>Clawhauser looked at her in shock. "Are you okay?" he asked her.</p>
      <p>"Yeah. Nothing hurt but my pride. Thankfully Officer Growle saved my before I was crushed. I just need a bit of a break before I go back and clean up the disaster I created."</p>
      <p>"Do you need help?" he asked.</p>
      <p>About to reject the offer, she instead accepted that her current predicament was because she had refused to wait for help.</p>
      <p>"I'll see if Growle will help me," she replied, thinking that it might be worth a shot asking the old bear for help before her mind turned elsewhere. "But there is something you can do for me," she began hesitantly.</p>
      <p>The cheetah's expression shifted from curious to suspicious to knowing in a matter of moments.</p>
      <p>"Judy," he warned, his eyes darting around nervously.</p>
      <p>"Pleeeeeease," she begged, eyes wide and pleading.</p>
      <p>"No, not the…not the eyes," he exclaimed, holding out a paw and closing his eyes tightly against her visage, but opening them every two seconds. Finally, his shoulders drooped in defeat. "Fine, you win. Just…put those away," he begged and she gave him a grateful smile.</p>
      <p>"Thank you," she said as he made his way from his desk, returning a few moments later with an evidence box.</p>
      <p>"Fangmeyer and Risoli are not going to be impressed if they find this gone. Again," he stressed.</p>
      <p>"I know. I'll make sure it makes its way back to the evidence room," she promised as she took the box from his paws and made her way to her old desk, the one that was butted up against Nick's.</p>
      <p>Placing the box down on the wooden surface, she had hoped to distract herself from the red fox, but now, he was all she could think of. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she hopped up on her chair and took the lid off the evidence box.</p>
      <p>Peering inside, she noted that nothing new had been added since the last time she had looked. She felt her heart sink with disappointment as the sudden weight of the bent piece of metal and the warped lock in her pocket caught her attention.</p>
      <p>She couldn't add the two pieces of evidence she had found because just like the black dry-cleaning tag, they were not part of the official chain of evidence. She had taken all three from the crime scene and were undocumented, though the tag had been bagged and documented at the hospital.</p>
      <p>Pulling out the baggie with the tag and the thick manila folder that held all of the evidence and witness statements that had been gathered, she quickly sifted through the papers hoping that she was mistaken, and that the ZPD had a lead on the case.</p>
      <p>Finding nothing, she sat back in her seat and stared dejectedly at the dry-cleaning tag, before her attention shifted to the empty chair in front of her.</p>
      <p>Nick had not come home last night and Finnick hadn't heard from him either. According to the fennec fox, this was not unexpected. Nick had more than a few hidey-holes; places he could run to if needed, and she was told that he would reappear when he was ready.</p>
      <p>They didn't talk about why it was that Nick had bolted, it was too embarrassing. Finnick believed that she and Nick were a couple and she didn't disabuse him of this notion; it was easier that way.</p>
      <p>Unfortunately, this was perhaps the only thing about her newfound understanding of her feelings for Nick that was simple. She couldn't even manage to pinpoint the moment when her feelings for Nick had shifted from friendship to something more, but she knew that all of the signs had been there and she had been too blind to see them.</p>
      <p><em>No, not blind</em>, she admitted. <em>Scared</em>.</p>
      <p>She would never have thought of herself as a coward, charging headlong into every situation that was thrown at her, but accepting that she was in love with Nick was…terrifying. She had never been in love before, or in a serious relationship, but now the stakes were so high.</p>
      <p>If they pursued something romantic and things didn't work out, she could lose him. No matter what her feelings were, the thought of living without Nick in her life made her reluctant to admit her feelings to him.</p>
      <p><em>But aren't you losing him anyway</em>? her inner voice queried.</p>
      <p>Her inner voice had a point. Would she be able to pretend that her feelings for Nick were completely platonic and ignore everything that had happened last night?</p>
      <p>She didn't think so.</p>
      <p>And even if she could, would Nick somehow be able to walk back everything that he had implied?</p>
      <p>Granted, Nick had never outright told her that he loved with her. He had only admitted that he had thought her and Finnick were in a relationship, nothing more. But because of her horrified reaction to his assumption, Nick had run away. He had believed he had revealed too much, but this was not the only reason he had not come home last night. She knew that he was deeply ashamed of his feelings for her. This was not surprising. Predators and prey did not go on dates, the didn't have romantic relationships, and they didn't fall in love; or if they did, no one was admitting it.</p>
      <p>She didn't believe that she and Nick were the only ones in the history of predators and prey to ever fall in love. But after the Nighthowler Incident, they had all seen how very tenuous the relationship between predator and prey was. They walked a very thin tightrope of tolerance and she knew that it was so easily broken.</p>
      <p>If she and Nick became a couple, their relationship would never be accepted by anyone -<em>except Finnick</em>- she acknowledged, but not by their family, their co-workers, and most assuredly not Zootopia.</p>
      <p>This left them where? Pretending they were friends and partners when they were out in public and being more in private?</p>
      <p>Just the thought of living a lie made her heart twist painfully in her chest.</p>
      <p>What if that was what Nick wanted, or was expecting?</p>
      <p>She couldn't do it. She didn't<em> want</em> to do it. But that meant their only other option was to face Zootpoia head-on and hope that they wouldn't be constantly harassed. Her heart sank so swiftly it was almost painful as she remembered the Nighthowler protests. <em>Would they do that to us</em>? she wondered.</p>
      <p>She and Nick were the heroes of Zootopia for now, but she knew that as much as the public loved raising heroes up, nothing was better than tearing them down.</p>
      <p>Closing her eyes against the salty wetness that stung her eyes, she gathered herself up. One step at a time. She needed to be able to talk with Nick first. Go from there. Opening her eyes again, she stared blankly at the black dry-cleaning tag in front of her, not feeling any better, but knowing that she didn't have much of a choice at the moment. She would-</p>
      <p>"Hey, Judy," a familiar voice said from over her shoulder, yanking her thoughts into the present and causing her to start, sending files and evidence bags flying.</p>
      <p>"Freddy!" she yelped as she leapt from her chair, scrambling to clean up the mess she had just made as she looked up at the buck who quickly knelt to help her with her task. Meeting his dark-grey eyes, she realized that in all of her ruminations, her thoughts had never once shifted to the buck.</p>
      <p>She had completely forgotten about him.</p>
      <p>Freddy helped her place everything back upon the desk, pausing to study the evidence bag that she had held in her paws only moments earlier before handing it to her. "I'm sorry for startling you," he apologized as she placed the baggie into the evidence box and closed the lid.</p>
      <p>Turning to him, she focused her attention back on the buck. "It's okay," she told him as tried to figure out what to say to him.</p>
      <p>Freddy fidgeted, as if he was unsure if his presence was welcome. "I'm sorry for bothering you, but Clawhauser said that you were at your old desk working, even though you were supposed to be taking a break," he informed her, his expression full of concern. "I know you've been busy and I don't want to overstep, especially because I'm not sure if you're trying to avoid me, but I just wanted you to know that I'm worried about you," he told her seriously. "If you need me to back off or whatever, I'm okay with that. I just…want you to know that you can talk to me and if there is anything I can do, all you have to do is ask."</p>
      <p>Staring up at his worried countenance, she acknowledged to herself that she was a horrible, horrible, bunny. She had been so focused on Nick, and how he was feeling, that she had ignored how Freddy must have felt when she hadn't bothered to text him back. The buck should have been furious and hurt by her actions, but here he was, offering her his understanding and support.</p>
      <p>Swallowing roughly, she took a deep, steadying breath. Guilt, hot and sticky, swirled around in her stomach as she reached out and clasped one of Freddy's paws with her own. "Thank you," she said sincerely as she gave his paw a quick squeeze before she let it go. "Freddy… do you have some time right now or… I'm assuming you're working," she observed, taking in his bicycle helmet and messenger bag.</p>
      <p>"No, I… I mean, yes, I'm working," he told her, "but I have a break coming up, so I am free for a little bit."</p>
      <p>"Can we go for a walk?" she asked.</p>
      <p>"Yeah, sure," Freddy agreed.</p>
      <p>Leaving the evidence box with Clawhauser to return to the evidence room, she and Freddy exited the precinct, and headed down the street; no particular destination in mind.</p>
      <p>Judy gathered her thoughts and tried to figure out what she was going to say to him.</p>
      <p><em>I'm sorry I led you on. I can't be with anyone right now. I am too busy</em>. Various excuses ran through her mind as she debated on which cliché line would best be used to distance herself from the buck without hurting him and revealing the real reason that she needed to end their relationship -if a few lunches and one date could be termed a relationship- because she couldn't tell him the truth.</p>
      <p>She hadn't even admitted to Nick that she was in love with him. It didn't seem fair for Freddy to know before Nick did. And besides, she still wasn't sure what -if anything-was going to happen between her and Nick.</p>
      <p>Freddy accepted her silence, not bothering to ask her any questions or make an attempt at small talk.</p>
      <p>They found themselves in a park, cubs, kits and various other young mammals running around as they played on the playground equipment.</p>
      <p>Finding a bench placed beneath a large oak tree, she sat and she watched the young play and wondered if Nick wanted kits. She wondered if she wanted them. If her and Nick were together, they could never have them. Though she supposed they could adopt, if that was something that would even be allowed.</p>
      <p>"You finally figured it out, didn't you?" Freddy asked her softly.</p>
      <p>Startled by his voice, she chastised herself for almost completely forgetting that Freddy was there, and the purpose of this conversation.</p>
      <p>Her mind suddenly caught up with his words. "What?" she asked in confusion, her body tensing as she became alert.</p>
      <p>"You finally realized that you're in love with him. With Nick I mean," he said as he hunched over, placing his elbows on his thighs, clasping his paws together as he looked over at her.</p>
      <p>Judy stared at him dumbly, her ears falling as her mouth slipped open, no words flowing forth.</p>
      <p>"I know," he said with a self-depreciating grin. "At least, I figured it out." He shook his head. "I wasn't sure at first, thinking that maybe I was just imaging things or reading too much into a really close friendship, and when you agreed to go out on a date with me, I thought I had a chance." He chuckled darkly. "But then I realized that I didn't because you were in love with him, you just didn't know it, or you were too scared to acknowledge it. One or the other."</p>
      <p>Judy continued to stare at Freddy, wide-eyed and completely speechless before wary defensiveness filled her. Clenching her teeth together, she waited for recrimination and disgust to fill his voice as he continued.</p>
      <p>"It makes sense though that the hero of Zootopia, first and still only bunny-cop on the force, wouldn't go for just a buck, no matter how awesome he thinks he is. She would turn the entirety of Zootopia on its head again by falling in love with a predator, but not just any predator, a fox."</p>
      <p>Still, she waited. Freddy didn't sound repulsed, but his voice held a small thread of anger. Of course, he had every right to be angry with her. She had led him on and avoided him when she had realized that something wasn't right between them rather than just being truthful with him and herself.</p>
      <p>"I'm sorry," she apologized trying to put the sincerity she truly felt into her words.</p>
      <p>Freddy finally glance over at her and leaned back on the bench a wry grin pulling at one corner of his mouth, his body relaxing. "It's okay. Like I said, I didn't really think I had a chance," he said.</p>
      <p>"Freddy…" she began, her voice trailing off because she didn't' really know what to say. "I really am sorry," she apologized again. "I really do like you and I think you're an amazing guy."</p>
      <p>Freddy sighed. "Story of my life," he grumbled.</p>
      <p>Judy turned so that she could look at him. "I didn't mean for this to happen. I was being stupid and not…not being honest about my own feelings for Nick. The last thing I wanted was for you to be hurt."</p>
      <p>"I know," he said, seriously.</p>
      <p>"But selfishly, I'm glad I got to know you, at least a little bit," she told him sincerely as she slid from the bench and stood, not wanting to drag out a painful moment and make things worse for him.</p>
      <p>Freddy looked up at her and frowned. "What?"</p>
      <p>"I said that I was glad to have met you," she repeated in confusion.</p>
      <p>Freddy stood. "Judy, I meant what I said when we first met. I wanted to meet you and if you let me, get to know you. Did I want to be more than just a friend? Absolutely! But if I can't be anything more to you than a friend, I can live with that."</p>
      <p>"You…want to be friends?" she asked hesitantly, surprised by his offer.</p>
      <p>"If you'll let me," Freddy said to her earnestly.</p>
      <p>"I… Won't it be awkward?"</p>
      <p>Freddy gave a one-shouldered shrug. "We went on one date, and I do like you, like a lot, but I'm pretty sure I can handle it," he replied. "I know where I stand with you, and I can respect that."</p>
      <p>Judy stared at Freddy a moment, gaging the truth of his words. "Thank you, Freddy. I'd like it if we could still be friends," she said to him.</p>
      <p>Freddy gave her a brilliant smile. "Well… Now that I've been completely friend-zoned…" he paused almost as if he was waiting for her to object, and continued when she didn't say anything, "I've got to be getting back," he told her.</p>
      <p>"Yeah. Me too."</p>
      <p>"Mind if I walk back with you? I kinda left my bike back at the precinct," Freddy said to her as he shifted from foot to foot.</p>
      <p>She chuckled. "Of course," she agreed as they meandered back the way they had come. "It is a public space after all. I couldn't really stop you."</p>
      <p>"I know, but I was just making sure that we are cool."</p>
      <p>"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?" she questioned.</p>
      <p>He laughed. "I guess. But I don't want to make you uncomfortable or anything."</p>
      <p>She gave a small smile. "I appreciate that. I…don't have many friends. Not many in Zootopia anyway."</p>
      <p>"I can't actually imagine that," he observed.</p>
      <p>"I work long hours and shift work, it doesn't leave much time to be socially active."</p>
      <p>"I suppose not." Freddy acknowledged with a nod.</p>
      <p>"And I tend to get a little…obsessive, when working on a tough case."</p>
      <p>"Like trying to figure out who killed you?" Freddy asked.</p>
      <p>Judy gave a sigh. "Yeah, like that one. Though I am not assigned to that particular case. I'm on desk duty for the foreseeable future, working with Officer Growle transcribing old case files," she replied.</p>
      <p>"I see. And did that black tag have anything to do with those old case files?" he asked.</p>
      <p>Judy eyed Freddy suspiciously. "Why?" she wondered.</p>
      <p>He shrugged. "I don't know. It looked familiar, but I can't seem to place it."</p>
      <p>Judy stopped dead in her tracks outside of the precinct doors and grabbed Freddy's arm, halting his progress. "You've seen that tag before? Are you sure?" she asked, her voice shaking with excitement and disbelief.</p>
      <p>"I can't be positive, but yeah, I think so," he said. "But like I said, I've been wracking my brain trying to remember where I saw it, but I'm drawing a blank. If it's important, I can-"</p>
      <p>The rest of whatever Freddy was going to say was cut off by Judy's gasp of surprise.</p>
      <p>Looking through the glass doors and into the precinct, they observed a huge crowd of officers standing around Clawhauser's desk.</p>
      <p>"What is going on?" Judy asked as she made her way through the door and into the large lobby.</p>
      <p>Pushing her way through the crowd, the officers began to part before her, revealing Nick, standing in the center.</p>
      <p>Nick noticed the movement and he turned, meeting her eyes for a moment before he glanced behind her.</p>
      <p>His expression froze before a smile crossed his face and he strode forward. Nick ignored her and reached out a paw. "You must be Freddy!" Nick offered in a chipper voice. "It's nice to meet you. You guys on a lunch date or something? Well, don't let me stop you two love bunnies, I was just on my way out."</p>
      <p>Nick brushed past them and Judy stared at the red fox in shock and confusion.</p>
      <p>"Love bunnies?" Freddy asked as they watched Nick wind his way through the officers that were protesting him leaving. "Wait! Does he not know?!" Freddy asked with a gasp.</p>
      <p>"I didn't exactly get a chance to tell him-"</p>
      <p>"Wilde!" The shout came from the second floor, causing the assembled body to turn as one, which caught Nick's attention.</p>
      <p>"Chief! Hey!" Nick said with a wave. "I'm guessing you got my letter," Nick said with a hint of contrition in his voice. "Sorry. I thought it was best just to leave it on your desk."</p>
      <p>"Letter?" Judy asked in confusion.</p>
      <p>"I don't accept your resignation, Wilde," Chief Bogo snarled.</p>
      <p>Judy gasped in shock, feeling the blood drain from her face.</p>
      <p>Nick stared at her for a moment, his face expressionless before his attention shifted back to the Cape buffalo. "Sorry, Chief, can't hear you, which is the problem. The ZPD can't have a deaf officer, so I'm just saving you the trouble of you having to discharge me."</p>
      <p>"Nick," Judy protested in a quavering voice.</p>
      <p>"Officer Wilde-"</p>
      <p>"Whelp, I guess I will catch all of you later," Nick said with a wave of his paw as he turned and began to saunter towards the doors. "But not too soon. I'm thinking of taking a nice long vacation," he added</p>
      <p>Fury suddenly roared through Judy's veins. Snatching a box of doughnuts from Clawhauser's desk, she threw one doughnut after another at the back of Nick's skull. "Nicholas Piberious Wilde! You are not quitting the ZPD!"</p>
      <p>The barrage of sweets pummeling him caused Nick to turn around. Having caught Nick's attention, she stormed up to him, grabbed the front of his yellow button-up shirt and pulled him down to her level.</p>
      <p>"You don't get to quit," she snarled lowly before she turned her attention over her shoulder. "Sorry, Chief!" she shouted. "Nick's not in his right mind. He's on heavy medication. I'll take him home, now."</p>
      <p>"Ouch, Carrots, watch the ribs," Nick protested, but she yanked him with her as she stormed through the doors of the precinct.</p>
      <p>Spinning around, she met his eyes and he at least had the decency to look abashed by his actions.</p>
      <p>"Don't you dare 'Carrots' me," she snapped, her body vibrating with fury. She let go of the front of his shirt. "You don't get to run away from the ZPD, your friends, or from me."</p>
      <p>"Judy," he began seriously, taking a step back from her. "It's already been-"</p>
      <p>"Two months and 5 days!" she interrupted him, poking him in the shoulder to make sure he was paying attention to what she was saying. "The doctor said it would be at least three months. You don't get to give up yet! And you know what? Even if you don't get your hearing back, you could still stay at the precinct."</p>
      <p>"As what? Officer Growle's partner doing data entry?" he asked her angrily.</p>
      <p>Just was about to defend the work she was doing as important, even if she didn't like it, but Nick spoke before she was able, cutting her off.</p>
      <p>"I wouldn't be your partner. So, what's the point?"</p>
      <p>Her heart flipped over in her chest and a warm tingle spread throughout her body, but she quickly quashed the sensation. She was still livid with him.</p>
      <p>"Were you even going to tell me?" she asked in a dangerously low voice that was completely lost on him.</p>
      <p>Nick avoided her eyes and turned so that he was in profile.</p>
      <p>She flinched. Hurt warred with anger, neither giving an inch and Judy found herself taking a step back just so she wouldn't hit him.</p>
      <p>"You can't stop me from quitting," Nick intoned softly. "I'm accepting the inevitable. With everything. A fresh start somewhere new will be good for me. But don't worry, Carrots, I'll never forget you."</p>
      <p>Judy wondered if he knew how his voice hitched in pain when he spoke and this almost broke her heart. She couldn't respond, he wasn't looking at her, but she was unable to say anything anyway because her throat had completely closed up with despair. He was intending to walk away from her, for good.</p>
      <p>"Well, you'd better get back to your boyfriend before he thinks you ran off on him. I've got a lot to do," he rallied in a bight voice, finally turning back to face her.</p>
      <p>Fury won out over hurt and she pasted a fake smile on her face as she dug around in her pocket.</p>
      <p>Nick looked back at her with distrust and his instincts were on-point because she was about to play very, very dirty.</p>
      <p>Approaching him, she stood in front of him. Reaching out, she clasped his paw in hers. "He's not my boyfriend, and he never will be. We're just friends." She squeezed his paw. "But… Good luck, Nick. I hope you enjoy running away." She let go of his paw and stepped back before turning and walking away, leaving him standing in the middle of the sidewalk.</p>
      <p>She measured her stride so that it was just above an amble when Nick was suddenly by her side, griping her upper arm and spinning her around to face him.</p>
      <p>"What is this?" he asked in confusion laced with apprehension.</p>
      <p>"A clue." She turned to walk away, but his grip on her arm stopped her.</p>
      <p>"Where did you get this?" he asked lowly, his voice now quivering with suppressed anger. Nick was from Happytown. He, like Finnick, probably recognized the significance of the two objects and their usage.</p>
      <p>"Exactly where you think I did," she replied. Lowering her eyelids so that they were at half-mast, she said, "But, that's no concern of yours, now is it?"</p>
      <p>Shaking off his paw, she again made her way back towards the precinct.</p>
      <p>Nick darted in front of her, blocking her path.</p>
      <p>"I have to get back to work, Nick. If you want to talk, you'll have to wait until I get home. Though, it sounds like the chances of you still being there when I get back tonight are low."</p>
      <p>Nick ignored her jab. "You were supposed to let this go. Let the other officers in the ZPD handle this. And you were not supposed to go back to Happytown," he hissed angrily.</p>
      <p>Staring up into his concerned and furious face, she felt her anger intensify. "I can't just 'let it go.' You know me better than that, Nick. I gave the ZPD a chance and they have come up with nothing. They won't let me near the case so I am doing it on my own. I went back to Happytown because I needed to. And I found something they missed because I was there before the warehouse exploded and because I had Finnick, who knows Happytown well enough that he found something that the ZPD thought was unimportant."</p>
      <p>Enlightenment dawned on Nick's features. "Finnick took you to Happytown?! I'm going to kill him!" Nick growled more to himself than to her.</p>
      <p>"I'm going to figure this out, Nick. Because I can't just sit back and watch as more mammals get dragged into something awful. We nearly died. I almost <em>lost</em> you. I can't leave it alone. So, go and run away if you need to. But I am staying here and I am going to solve this case."</p>
      <p>Judy wasn't sure how long Nick stood there, his eyes searching hers for something, whether he found it or not she wasn't sure, but eventually Nick gave a slow nod.</p>
      <p>"Okay, Carrots. We'll figure this out. Just… No more trips to Happytown," he said as he placed his arms around her and she did the same, reveling in his warmth as she gave him a gentle hug.</p>
      <p>Finally stepping away, she looked up at him. "I can't promise anything, Nick."</p>
      <p>"No more trips without me, then," he growled.</p>
      <p>"Deal. Now go home. You're supposed to be recovering. You'll never get better if you don't rest," she admonished.</p>
      <p>Nick gave an annoyed sigh. "Fine," he grumbled.</p>
      <p>"And, Nick," she began, her temper flaring. "I don't forgive you, not yet. We do things together, we handle things together. Whatever happens. Got it?" she questioned.</p>
      <p>Nick, looking startled at her outburst searched her eyes again. "I promise," he said to her in a soft tone.</p>
      <p>"Good," she said as she strode past him and this time he didn't try to stop her.</p>
      <p>She stood before the door of the precinct, her paw upon the door handle and paused, looking over her shoulder at him. Nick still stood exactly where she'd left him, staring after her. "You drive me completely crazy, you dumb fox." She wasn't sure if Nick could read her lips or not. "But I love you," she admitted. She turned and opened the door of the precinct.</p>
      <p>She wasn't sure if Nick was able to interpret her words at the distance he stood, or if he did, in what way he would take them, but she didn't care. They would figure things out. One day at a time, one kit step at a time.</p>
      <p>Standing in the lobby, feeling hopeful for the very first time in months, she looked around at the ZPD officers as they went about their duties before her gaze landed upon Freddy and reality crashed back into her.</p>
      <p>His gaze was questioning, and she knew exactly what he was asking. She gave her head a quick shake and a one-shouldered shrug. No, she didn't tell Nick how she felt, (at least, not directly). Nothing had been resolved. She didn't know what was going on.</p>
      <p>Freddy shook his head in exasperation.</p>
      <p>He approached her and she placed her paw in his. "You are really terrible at this, aren't you?" he queried with a wry grin.</p>
      <p>"I'm still mad at him. He was going to leave! And quit the ZPD!" she defended.</p>
      <p>Freddy gave a snort. "Well, can't say I blame the guy. I am pretty intimidating."</p>
      <p>She pulled her paw from his and gave him a playful punch to the shoulder. "Not funny," she said with a grin.</p>
      <p>He chuckled. "I gotta go. So, I guess…I will see you around sometime. Just let me know if things work out. Or I can beat him up for being an idiot. Whichever." Turning and heading towards the exit. Judy companionably walked beside him as they exited the precinct.</p>
      <p>She noticed that Nick had left. Hopefully he had taken her suggestion to go home seriously and had not decided to do something stupid, like track down Finnick and have it out with the fennec fox. In the state he was in, she had no doubt who the winner of that melee would be and it wouldn't be Nick.</p>
      <p>"Freddy, how are you okay with all of this?" she wondered, finally feeling brave enough to voice the question that had been floating around in the back of her mind.</p>
      <p>Freddy frowned as they approached his bike, seeming to think very seriously about the question.</p>
      <p>He shrugged as he straddled his bike. "I spent my whole life with parents who loved each other even though they were different species. Yes, a rabbit and a hare are close, at least in the same family, but same principal. So, I guess…it isn't that strange to me. I mean it is, he's a fox, so he's a predator, but I think loving the mammal for who is on the inside is much more important than what they are on the outside."</p>
      <p>She stared at him, her heart warmed by his words, a twinge of regret spiking through her that she didn't feel the same way about him as he did about her. "Thank you, Freddy."</p>
      <p>He smiled. "Good luck," he said to her.</p>
      <p>She grinned. "Thanks, I'll need it," she mused as he made to ride off, but she stopped him by calling his name. "Freddy?" He looked at her with curiosity. Gazing into his eyes, she debated with herself. "This weekend, are you busy?"</p>
      <p>His eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Nooo… Why?" he asked apprehensively.</p>
      <p>She bit her lip hesitating. "I need your help."</p>
      <p>"Yeeeaahh… I don't think I want to get involved in…whatever you and Nick-"</p>
      <p>"No!" she interrupted in embarrassment. "Not…not that. Just come over. I'll text you the address. I don't have time to explain right now," she said to him.</p>
      <p>Freddy studied her. "Okay," he agreed and she gave a quick nod of gratefulness.</p>
      <p>He rode off and she entered the precinct, feeling determined, but uneasy. She had no illusions. What she was doing was dangerous and she was dragging civilians into it. But she knew she could not solve this case on her own, and right now, she needed all the help she could get.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>
        <strong>Sooooo close, yet so far! lol! Ah well. I hope everyone enjoyed :)</strong>
      </p>
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<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Chapter 15</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hello all!! A new chappie for everyone!!<br/>Also this is the chapter where the M rating comes into effect, just giving you a warning.<br/>Hope everyone enjoys!! and thank you to everyone who left comments and kuddos, you are all amazing!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="xcontrast">
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<p></p><div><p>
        <strong>Chapter 15</strong>
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<p><strong>Judy</strong> repressed a sigh as the furious fox stood a few feet away, glaring at her as if she had just betrayed him in the worst possible way.</p>
<p>"I thought we were supposed to be doing this together," he accused angrily.</p>
<p>"And we are," she replied, keeping a firm rein on her own temper.</p>
<p>"Then what is he doing here?" Nick asked pointing over his shoulder at Freddy who stood by the kitchen stove drinking a pop and watching the proceedings with interest.</p>
<p>"You still haven't told him, huh?" Freddy quipped from behind Nick's back.</p>
<p>"You aren't helping!" she shot at the buck.</p>
<p>"I thought you wanted my help!" Nick retorted and Judy shifted her focus back to Nick.</p>
<p>"How have you not told him?!" Freddy wondered as he took a leisurely sip of pop.</p>
<p>"It's complicated!" she retorted to Freddy defensively.</p>
<p>"How is it complicated?!" Nick huffed out in exacerbation.</p>
<p>"I'll admit, I'm impressed by his lip-reading skills," Freddy said and Judy ignored the buck.</p>
<p>"I wasn't-"she began to answer Nick, but cut herself off, putting her paws on her head in frustration as she closed her eyes. "Maybe this was a bad idea," she grumbled under her breath.</p>
<p>"Thank you," Nick said to her as he turned to Freddy and took the pop from his paws, placing it on the counter. "Sorry you made the trip, thanks for coming," he said, happily motioning for Freddy to make his way to the elevator.</p>
<p>Freddy lifted a brow ridge and looked to Judy.</p>
<p>"Nick," she huffed but Nick wasn't looking at her.</p>
<p>Freddy pushed away from the oven and strolled over to Judy, throwing his arm around her shoulders and giving Nick a wide, challenging grin. "Judy doesn't want me to go, do you?" Freddy asked and Judy looked at Freddy in uneasy confusion.</p>
<p>"No, I don't," she ground out watching as the smile fell from Nick's face, anger, jealously, and hurt replacing it.</p>
<p>"Why is he here?" Nick asked, his voice tight with restrained emotion, his ears pinned back against his skull, teeth bared in an angry scowl.</p>
<p>"Remind me to never get on his bad side when he gets better," Freddy murmured into her ear. "He looks like he's about to kill me."</p>
<p>Pushing Freddy's arm off her shoulder, she took a step towards Nick, relieved to be able to turn the focus from herself to the reason she had asked Freddy over.</p>
<p>"I think he can help us," she argued as she took another step towards him.</p>
<p>"How?" Nick snarled.</p>
<p>"He's seen the tag somewhere before," she replied.</p>
<p>"Where?" Nick asked Freddy.</p>
<p>"I can't remember," the buck admitted.</p>
<p>"Great, very helpful," Nick groused sarcastically. "I guess he has no reason to stay."</p>
<p>"Nick," Judy quickly took another step towards Nick before blowing out a sigh of resignation. "Maybe you're right," she agreed softly as she looked down at her feet.</p>
<p>"What now?" Freddy asked in confusion.</p>
<p>Judy looked over at Freddy and stepped away, distancing herself so that she could talk to Freddy and Nick would be able to read her lips, including him in what she was about to say.</p>
<p>"I got so wrapped up in solving this case, that I… When I dragged Nick into the Otterton case, I didn't know that it was connected to something so much bigger than just a missing otter. I didn't know that I was going to be risking his life. He could have died, on more than one occasion, but I know I couldn't have solved it without him. And here I am bringing you and Finnick into this, and possibly putting your lives in danger. I quasi blackmailed Finnick into going with me into Happytown and I could have gotten him killed searching that warehouse and I'm pretty sure that I…broke him. I couldn't ask him for more help than he's already given, and I keep…dragging civilians into danger, but whatever was going on in that warehouse, I believe that innocent mammal lives are at stake. But I can't ask you to-"</p>
<p>"If you think I can help, then I'll help," Freddy interrupted.</p>
<p>Judy blinked in surprise. "Freddy-"</p>
<p>"Listen," Freddy said, waving off her protest. "I haven't known you for very long, but I've seen how this case has been eating at you. You aren't going behind the ZPD's back and working a case you're not supposed to be working because you want to be crowned the hero of Zootopia again, or even because this case almost cost you and Nick your lives. You are doing it because it's the very thing you said you became a cop for: helping mammals. If you believe that there are mammals out there in some kind of trouble, then I'm all in."</p>
<p>Judy stared at him in shock.</p>
<p>"But Nick's right," the buck said acknowledging Nick who had been oddly silent during their exchange, the fox perking up a bit at Freddy's sudden agreement with Nick's words. "I don't know how much help I can be besides keeping an eye out for that tag."</p>
<p>"You know Zootopia better than anyone I've ever met," she admitted, and she noticed that Nick flinched at this assertion.</p>
<p>"Uh…I'll admit I get around and I do know quite a bit about Zootopia's history, but I've never been to Happytown and don't know much about it other than to stay as far away from it as possible."</p>
<p>"That's the point," she said as she, motioned with her paws. "You have nothing to do with Happytown, but you saw the tag <em>outside</em> of Happytown and Nick and I were staking out Howletts Dry Cleaning, <em>outside</em> of Happytown."</p>
<p>"Happytown is pretty close to Howletts," Freddy pointed out earning him a glare for his troubles.</p>
<p>"I know you can't remember where you saw the tag," Judy continued, "but maybe if we go through your route and the evidence, maybe it will jog your memory and we can figure out <em>where</em> Happytown crosses into the rest of Zootopia," she said to him.</p>
<p>"And Nick, I need you. I<em> need</em> my partner. I can't do this without you, because you're the one who has always made me a better cop."</p>
<p>"You've always been a good cop, Judy," Nick replied softly. "The best I know, and I've known a lot of cops," he said with a wry smirk, his voice thick with sincerity.</p>
<p>They lapsed into silence as Judy gazed into Nick's emerald-green eyes and it felt like everything and everyone had faded away. It was just her and Nick and a sense of euphoric 'rightness' in the world and Judy knew that this was how things were supposed to be, and that whatever challenges, hatred, disgust, or harassment they would be subjected to, it would be worth it because she would fight to have Nick.</p>
<p>"Is this the part where we shout: Go Team! or something?" Freddy asked curiously, completely shattering the moment.</p>
<p>Judy blinked, feeling suddenly flushed with embarrassment. Giving a laugh to cover her discomfort glanced over at Freddy. "Sure," she mused as Freddy smiled brightly shoving a paw forward in expectation.</p>
<p>Rolling her eyes, she placed her paw on top of the grey rabbit's, waiting a moment before Judy grabbed Nick's paw and placed it atop of hers. "Go team!" she said as Nick gave a derisive snort and murmured 'Bunnies,' as Freddy exuberantly shouted 'go team' as well.</p>
<p>Nick pulled his paw away. "Now that we got that out of the way," he said with a forced smile, "what now?"</p>
<p>"Okay," Judy said, trying to refocus her thoughts from Nick and back to the issue at paw.</p>
<p>Disappearing into their bedroom, she emerged a moment later with a thick folder.</p>
<p>"You didn't steal the evidence file, did you?" Nick asked in trepidation.</p>
<p>"Of course not!" she said with a shake of her head as she walked to the counter, opened a drawer, and dug out a roll of tape, a black marker, and a pad of post-it notes. "I made my own," she stated as she took everything over to the blank wall in the kitchen.</p>
<p>Opening the file, she took the photo that lay on top and after adding some tape, stuck it to the wall.</p>
<p>"We started at Howlett's," she said as she grabbed the next photo and repeated the process. "We ended up in Happytown in a warehouse that was detonated."</p>
<p>"That picture you stole," Nick said as he pointed to the burned-out warehouse where they had almost lost their lives.</p>
<p>Judy glared. "I may have photocopied some pictures," she admitted defensively, already feeling guilty enough for her small foray into illegally copying evidence. "I left the file completely intact," she said as she continued. "This tag," she pointed to a picture of the dry-cleaning tag that she put under the picture of the warehouse, "was attached to the dry-cleaning the ocelot was carrying." She looked over her shoulder to make sure Nick and Freddy were paying attention, both males studying the wall silently. "Finnick and I found what we believe to be pieces of a cage that was hidden in a wooden packing crate." She put up a picture of the metal pieces along with a generic picture of a wooden crate. And that, sadly, was the extent of their knowledge.</p>
<p>Looking at the wall, she had thought there was more, that somehow, while going through the evidence in her mind and by placing it on the wall in chronological order, that miraculously a lightbulb of epiphany would go off on her head, but nothing happened. The same evidence that had given her nothing, remained so and it was frustrating.</p>
<p>She shook her head. But that was the point, wasn't it? She had hit a dead end, she had asked for help and she hoped that this meagre offering would act as a catalyst, giving them the lead they needed to start moving forward instead of remaining inert.</p>
<p>Taking a steadying breath, she gathered her thoughts and turned to face the two males behind her. "Freddy, I know this is asking a lot, but does any of this make any sense to you? Do you see something we don't?"</p>
<p>Freddy perked up. "Oh, hold on," he rushed to the elevator where he had placed his backpack and pulled out a roll of paper.</p>
<p>Darting back to her pathetic make-shift evidence board, he grabbed the roll of tape and with Judy's help, put up a map of Zootopia.</p>
<p>"I brought the map like you asked, almost forgot about it," he said bashfully as he took a step back from the wall. "You got any of those snazzy coloured flag sticky tabs?" he asked.</p>
<p>"Yes," she said as she darted back to the drawer she had grabbed the tape and marker from and brought them back, handing them to Freddy who handed them to Nick.</p>
<p>Nick looked at the buck in confusion. "I'm too short to put these up," he explained as Nick walked over to the map and marked off Howletts and the warehouse's location.</p>
<p>"That is…sad," Freddy said with a shake of his head and although Judy felt the same way, she pushed away the gloomy thoughts.</p>
<p>"I managed to find fourteen missing mammals with no other evidence than the tail of a red fox. The three of us can figure this out," Judy offered optimistically.</p>
<p>Nick raised a brow-ridge before looking at the map, Freddy standing beside him and frowning, placing a finger on the warehouse and tracing the nearest route out of Happytown, tapping the road thoughtfully with his finger.</p>
<p>"I don't-" Freddy stopped, placing a paw on Nick's shoulder.</p>
<p>Nick looked over at him questioningly and Judy felt her heart melt a little as she realized that Freddy was making sure Nick was included in what he was about to say because Nick, from his position, wouldn't have heard Freddy begin to speak.</p>
<p>Freddy spoke directly to Nick. "I don't think your warehouse is standing anymore," he said.</p>
<p>Judy stared at him in shock. "You went into Happytown?" she hissed.</p>
<p>"Nope," Freddy said with a shake of his head. "I may be an adrenalin junkie, but I'm not insane," he said as he turned back to Nick. "We bike messengers get up pretty early in the morning, usually before anyone else is up; especially if we have to commute," he began. "There aren't a lot of routes that would take us anywhere near Happytown, that doesn't mean that there aren't ones that are pretty close," he explained pointing to the map. "This road, Mangrove Drive, is the only road in or out of Happytown. There are other pathways, sidewalks, and catwalks in and out, but this road is it. And two days ago, Jamie, he's a lynx that generally works City Central, like me, but he lives out that way, has to catch the train up. Anyway, he told me that he saw some big movers, you know, beavers with heavy equipment, coming out of Happytown. He thought it was weird because it's <em>Happytown.</em> They don't build things and they don't tear things down."</p>
<p>"Three days ago, I was in the warehouse with Finnick," Judy gasped.</p>
<p>"Great, they knocked down a building that we weren't ever going to go to again anyway," Nick said with a shrug.</p>
<p>Judy frowned. "But why knock it down?"</p>
<p>"So nosey bunnies stay out of it," Nick growled, apparently still not happy about her and Finnick's nocturnal excursion.</p>
<p>Judy gave Nick a sarcastic glare for his troubles.</p>
<p>"Are you two done?" Freddy asked, tapping at the map to gain their attention. "Whoever hired the beavers would have to have money. Like…boatloads of money to get anyone to voluntarily go into Happytown and tear a building down."</p>
<p>Nick blinked. "He's not wrong," Nick agreed. "That's assuming the beavers were really there tearing the warehouse down. And no, no one is going to check and see if they did tear it down."</p>
<p>Judy bit her lip but nodded her agreement. Taking the post-it notepad, she wrote MONEY? and BUILDING TORN DOWN? Tore off the note and stuck it on the map by the flag and photo of the warehouse.</p>
<p>"And still at square one," Judy huffed in disappointment.</p>
<p>"Well, so we start back at square one," Freddy said as he pointed at Howlett's. "Why were you at Howlett's?" he asked.</p>
<p>"Stake out," Nick answered. "The ZPD thought the business was involved in money laundering."</p>
<p>"And they thought this because…?" Freddy wondered.</p>
<p>"Because it's a dry cleaning business, located two blocks outside of Happytown, and it's still in business. How many mammals do you think live on the outer ridges who need to have their clothes dry cleaned?" Nick answered.</p>
<p>"So, was anyone at Howlett's arrested?" he asked.</p>
<p>"No," Judy answered. "The ZPD went through all of their books and the building and they found no evidence of any wrong-doing."</p>
<p>"Okay. But there was something going on there, maybe not money laundering because…?" Freddy prompted.</p>
<p>"The ocelot grabbed the dry-cleaning bags after hours," Judy said. "Which, okay, maybe he was just late or had an arrangement or any number of perfectly normal reasons, but when he saw me, he ran."</p>
<p>"Maybe it's drugs," Freddy offered. "Like, garment bags full of drugs,"</p>
<p>Judy shook her head. "I knocked him down, the bags were clothes."</p>
<p>"Clothes made from drugs?" Freddy asked with a shrug as he looked to Nick. "I don't know. I'm a bike messenger, not a criminal mastermind," he defended.</p>
<p>"That you are not," Nick agreed.</p>
<p>Freddy looked at Nick, eyes narrowed in speculation as if trying to decide whether he was being praised or insulted.</p>
<p>"Anyway…" Judy said, touching Nick on the shoulder to gain his attention.</p>
<p>"Right," Freddy said looking at the wall again. "The ocelot runs into Happtown. Why?"</p>
<p>"Because he has a warehouse he can blow up?" Nick asked.</p>
<p>"Seems extreme," Freddy said thoughtfully. "But maybe," he agreed. "What we do know is that he frequents Happytown because he purposefully went there. Maybe he thought Judy wouldn't follow?"</p>
<p>"If it was any other cop, they probably wouldn't have," Nick grumbled bitingly.</p>
<p>Both Nick and Freddy looked at her accusingly.</p>
<p>"Okay, I get it," Judy said with a roll of her eyes. "I followed the ocelot into Happytown, excuse me for doing my <em>job</em>," she said with a huff. "I uncovered something big!"</p>
<p>"You almost got yourself killed," Nick growled, and Judy felt her ears flop down in guilty dismay.</p>
<p>"Right, but before then, what happened?" Freddy asked trying to remove the tension that suddenly filled the room.</p>
<p>Judy turned her attention back to Freddy. "I lost Nick, I scuffled with the ocelot, the tag fell from the dry-cleaning, and the ocelot grabbed the garment bags, set the bombs, and ran out the door."</p>
<p>"And the reason you think the tag is more important than what was<em> in</em> the bag?" Freddy asked.</p>
<p>Judy stared at the picture of the tag. "I watched dry cleaning going in and out of the shop all day, and none of them had this kind of tag."</p>
<p>"So, it identifies the bags," Freddy said with a shrug. "That doesn't make the tags more important than what was <em>in</em> the bags."</p>
<p>Judy blinked. Freddy was right. What was in the garment bags could be more important than the tag. She had been so focused on it because it was the only piece of evidence she had originally found, but it meant she had excluded the possibility that it was<em> just</em> a tag.</p>
<p>Her mind raced. "Either way, you said you've seen the tags before," Judy argued, "which still makes them important."</p>
<p>"I <em>have</em> seen the tag, but I don't remember if it was the same colour," he admitted, "but I still can't remember where I saw it."</p>
<p>Judy handed him the marker. "And that's why you're going to show us where your routes are and any routes you have done or subbed for anyone else."</p>
<p>Freddy took the marker from her paw and looked at the map. He began drawing lines, tracing out his routes and any others he had done, and they waited in silence, only the squeak of marker on paper filling the room.</p>
<p>Putting the cap back on the marker, Freddy scanned the map and gave a nod. "That should be everything," he said as he turned. "My routes are mainly in and around City Center," he explained, pointing to the map. "I've filled in for routes in Sahara Square, but I've never had any or taken over any routes in Tundratown or the Rainforest District."</p>
<p>"Do we cross them off the map?" she asked Nick.</p>
<p>"Mr. Big would know if there was anything going on in Tundratown and if it involved you, his grandchild's godmother, he would have told you," Nick said thoughtfully, placing an 'X' through Tundratown. "I'm not sure about the Rainforest District though," he admitted. "Lot of shady things happen in the jungle. Great for hiding out, if you don't mind getting wet."</p>
<p>Judy looked at the map and sighed. "There's so much of the city left," she complained.</p>
<p>"Well, that still leaves the twisted bits of metal that were apparently part of a…cage?" Freddy asked.</p>
<p>"Part of a cage and what's left of a lock," she said as she tried to restrain a shudder at the thought of some poor mammal being locked in a cage, and thrown in a packing crate, and then… She had no idea.</p>
<p>"Nick?" she asked in a hesitant voice. She had heard the story from Finnick, but she wanted to know if Nick too had gotten caught up in the deadly fighting matches that Finnick had.</p>
<p>Nick's eyes slid to hers before they slipped back to the map. "I never saw one, only heard rumours that they existed."</p>
<p>"Rumours about what?" Freddy asked in confusion.</p>
<p>"The mammal fighting rings," Nick answered, his fur standing on end as he stared hard at the map, his face blank, but his eyes were full of fear and pain.</p>
<p>Judy opened her mouth to ask him if Finnick had ever told him anything, but snapped it shut when she realized that Finnick hadn't. If he had, Nick would have told her what Finnick had told her, but Nick had said he had only heard<em> rumours.</em></p>
<p>Wondering if she should share what Finnick had told her, she decided against it, at least for the moment. Finnick had never breathed a word of his experience to Nick, and it wasn't her secret to tell.</p>
<p>Freddy touched Nick's shoulder, and Nick blinked, giving his head a shake as if trying to scatter the horrible memories that had been brought to the surface of his mind.</p>
<p>"Mammal… you mean like…MMA cage fights?" Freddy asked him.</p>
<p>"Something like that," Nick agreed. "Only instead of fighting for money and acclaim, you fight for your freedom and your life and you don't have the option of saying no."</p>
<p>Freddy's ears fell as he stared at Nick in growing horror. "But…how?" he asked in a disbelieving voice.</p>
<p>"Unpaid debt, cross the wrong mammal, outlived your usefulness, pick your reason," Nick replied in bitter disgust.</p>
<p>The silence in the room became palpable before Judy broke it by writing MAMMAL FIGHTING RING? on a sticky note and put it by the picture of the metal she had found in the warehouse with Finnick.</p>
<p>Judy looked at the wall, at all the evidence they had, and she felt no closer to understanding what was going on. Writing one more thing down on a sticky note, she stuck it to the side.</p>
<p>MISSING MAMMALS?</p>
<p>She pointed at the sticky note. "I've been transcribing Cold Cases into the database, and I noticed that there were a lot of missing mammal cases that had come out of Happytown."</p>
<p>Nick sighed. "Not too surprising. Happytown is a place where mammals tend to disappear."</p>
<p>"Happytown has been abandoned by the ZPD, the government, by everyone," she insisted.</p>
<p>"Judy, the thing is, all of this," Nick made a gesture that encompassed all Zootopia, "is just…bureaucracy. Zootopia is made up of different districts that all have their own way of running things and dealing with their dark underbellies; the things that the general public doesn't know about or chooses to ignore." Nick shook his head. "How many mammals do you think Mr. Big has iced?" he asked before he made a face of sarcastic shock. "Oh, my, that poor mammal, went to Tundratown and accidentally fell into one of the ice flows and drown from hypothermic shock."</p>
<p>Judy felt her shoulders slump and gave a reluctant nod.</p>
<p>"Do mammals go missing? Yes. Do mammals use other mammals for their own reasons? Yes. Do mammals kill other mammals? Yes," Nick stated.</p>
<p>"And it's our job to find out what happened to them," she argued.</p>
<p>"Judy-"</p>
<p>"They were locking mammals in cages and putting them in packing crates. They were taking them <em>somewhere,"</em> she insisted.</p>
<p>"I know," he said softly.</p>
<p>"Finnick thinks that whatever is happening in Happytown is worse than the mammal fighting rings," Judy offered softly, feeling the fight leave her.</p>
<p>"Something worse than kidnapping mammals and forcing them to fight to the death?" Freddy asked.</p>
<p>"You'd be surprised at how sick and twisted some mammals are," Nick replied with a shudder before he dragged his paws down his face.</p>
<p>They stared at the map in silence, the minutes ticking by until Nick let out a sigh. "You see anything I don't, Carrots?"</p>
<p>"Nothing," she admitted solemnly. "Freddy?" she asked.</p>
<p>Freddy blinked at her and shook his head. "Sorry, I have nothing. Not yet anyway. But, I'll keep wracking my brain to remember where I saw that tag, or at least, figure out what district I was in when I saw it, narrow things down that way."</p>
<p>"Thanks, Freddy," she replied dejectedly.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry I wasn't more help," he told her apologetically, his ears flopping down.</p>
<p>"It's okay, Freddy, it was a long-shot," she admitted, "but we'll get there. I know we will," she said as she gathered herself and gave a Freddy a hopeful smile.</p>
<p>He gave an answering one in return. "We will," he agreed before he turned back to the wall. "Can I?" he questioned as he took out his phone to take a picture.</p>
<p>"Yeah," she answered.</p>
<p>"Thanks," he replied as he took the picture, staring at the wall intently. "Something is bothering me about this whole thing," he said as he tapped the map and traced the route that led him past the ZPD. "I mean, the whole thing bothers me, but…" his voice trailed off as he moved his finger back to Happytown and tapped Mangrove Drive. "If Jamie saw the heavy machinery coming out, I wonder if he's noticed any other big transport vehicles, like a truck?"</p>
<p>Judy's eyes went wide. "If they were moving those crates, they would have to have a vehicle big enough to do it!" Judy agreed with excitement.</p>
<p>"That's only<em> if</em> they were moving them out of Happytown," Nick pointed out. "Blowing up the warehouse has probably curtailed their operations somewhat. If I were whoever is running this, I'd keep a low profile for a while, and it may take time to organize a new base of operations and supply line for whatever they were doing with Howlett's."</p>
<p>"That's true," Judy acknowledged sullenly. "And like you said, we would only notice trucks coming out of Happytown if they were<em> leaving</em> Happytown. It's possible that everything is happening <em>in</em> Happytown and since no one goes there voluntarily, we wouldn't even know if they set up in another warehouse and continued with whatever horrible operation they are running."</p>
<p>Freddy tapped his phone against his lips. "Maybe. I'm going to give Jamie a call and maybe a few of the other bike messengers I know. Maybe someone's seen something they don't realize they've seen," he said as he turned to Nick. "It was nice meeting you, Mr. Wilde," he said as he gave Nick a paw.</p>
<p>Slowly, Nick took it and gave his paw a shake. "Nick," Nick said as Freddy gave a smile. "Nick is fine."</p>
<p>"Right," Freddy said as he turned his attention to Judy, "I'll let you know if I remember anything or discover anything," he said as he made his way to the elevator.</p>
<p>"Thanks, Freddy," she said as she followed him to the elevator where he grabbed his backpack from the ground.</p>
<p>Freddy positioned himself so that his back was to Nick. "You need to tell Nick how you feel," he said, his demeanor serious.</p>
<p>"Freddy," she whispered in a soft voice, nervousness filling her. "It's just-"</p>
<p>"Complicated, I know," he told her. "Are you still angry with him for wanting to leave the ZPD?" he asked.</p>
<p>She shook her head. She wasn't angry with him anymore. She knew that everything was beginning to eat him up inside. The weeks had turned into months and his hearing had not yet returned; even though he still had three weeks left before his eardrums were fully healed. Added to this was his belief that she and Freddy were more than just friends and it was like his life was completely out of his control and he was trying to take some of his power back. She forgave him for feeling that way because she wasn't sure that in the same circumstances, she wouldn't have reacted in the same way.</p>
<p>"Then why?" Freddy asked gently.</p>
<p>"What if…" her voice trailed off because there were too many what if's to just choose one.</p>
<p>His paws slid down her arms and he took her paws in his. "Judy, you are the bravest bunny I know, and not just because you became a cop. You are an inspiration to all bunnies. You didn't join the ZPD to become a token bunny, you joined to help mammals and you became a <em>hero</em>," he stated sincerely. "I've seen how he looks at you, and how you look at him, and if there's any mammal in Zootopia brave enough to take the chance on love between predator and prey, it's you."</p>
<p>Judy felt as if she couldn't breathe as her emotions flowed chaotically through her; panic, trepidation, hope, and determination all warring within her.</p>
<p>"Why do you care?" she asked in a voice that was barely audible, touched by his words, but confused by them as well.</p>
<p>"Because I wonder what it would have been like for my parents if mammals had stood by them instead of abandoning or shunning them. And the thought of you two not being able to be together because of small-minded prejudices makes me want to punch something, and I'm not a violent buck. So, whatever happens, I'm going to be here for you. Team WildeHopps all the way."</p>
<p>"WildeHopps?" she asked in confusion.</p>
<p>"Yeah, your first names sound weird when you smush them together, so WildeHopps," he said with a shrug.</p>
<p>She stared at him a minute before she gave Freddy's paws a squeeze, smiling brilliantly at him.</p>
<p>Freddy blinked in shock as she let go of his paws and launched herself into him, giving him a fierce hug.</p>
<p>"Thank you," she whispered to him.</p>
<p>Freddy hugged her in return before stepping back and giving her an embarrassed smile. "I should go," he said as he settled his backpack on his back and walked into the elevator.</p>
<p>Turning around, she faced him as he pulled down the doors. "See you later," he said to Judy and waved to Nick before hitting the button which caused the elevator to rise.</p>
<p>"Bye!" Judy said as she waved to him, watching as the elevator ascended, trying to calm her rapidly beating heart.</p>
<p>Spinning on her heel, she faced Nick, who gave her a gentle if resigned smile.</p>
<p>"Freddy's nice," he said in a soft voice that was almost able to hide the pain that permeated the two words.</p>
<p>"Yes, he is," she agreed as she took a step towards him.</p>
<p>"Which is too bad, because I really wanted to hate him," he said as he took a step back, and she wasn't sure if this movement was subconscious or purposeful. "But I was right, he didn't help," he added as he gave a wry grin, the teasing emotion not quite reaching his eyes.</p>
<p>"No, he didn't," she agreed as she took another step closer to Nick. "But we might get a lead," she said optimistically as Nick looked down at his feet for a moment before taking a deep breath and giving her a smile.</p>
<p>"Listen," he began. "A few days ago, you said you and Freddy wouldn't ever be anything more than friends, but after watching you two today… I know you were just saying that for my sake," he said earnestly. "I don't want you to feel like you have to put your life on hold for me. Freddy seems like a nice buck and he really likes you, and I can see that you really like him too."</p>
<p>"I <em>do</em> like Freddy," she said truthfully. "He's sweet, and thoughtful, and funny," she said as she took another step towards Nick, who looked as if every kind quality she listed was a knife to his chest, failing to recognize that he was all those things and more; so much more.</p>
<p>"Then you should go out with him," Nick told her softly, his expression one of resignation and love.</p>
<p>"I can't," she said with a shake of her head and she took a final step towards him, invading his personal space.</p>
<p>"Judy," he whispered, his voice breaking with despair, believing that she was sacrificing her chance at a relationship because she felt either guilt, obligation, or both towards him, and this nearly broke her heart.</p>
<p>"I'm in love with someone else," she admitted as she watched the proverbial knife that she had earlier struck him in the chest with twist brutally. She reached up and gently placed her paws on either side of his face, looking deeply into his emerald gaze, filling hers with the overwhelming love she felt for him. "Dumb fox," she whispered silkily as she stood on her tip-toes and kissed him.</p>
<p>Their lips touched briefly before Nick reared back in shock, his eyes wild, her paws falling away from his face, as she stepped back in horror.</p>
<p>Her first thought was that she had been wrong; that Finnick and Freddy had been mistaken in Nick's feelings for her, but then Nick spoke.</p>
<p>"I'm dreaming," he whispered, taking a step back, unable to move further away from her as he backed into the kitchen counter. "I fell asleep and now I-"</p>
<p>"Nick, stop," she said as she gripped the front of his shirt gently. He looked down at her with wide-eyed disbelief. "I love you," she stated, making sure she enunciated her words. "When we first met, you were a means to an end, my reluctant blackmailed partner, and then you<em> were</em> my partner and my friend and I stood under that bridge, after I had destroyed that friendship, that trust, and I felt like my entire world had fallen apart. The thought of losing you, it was like I couldn't breathe. You were supposed to be with me, walk beside me, and when you held my pen up and teased that you would delete my words in forty-eight hours, I think that was the moment I started falling in love with you. And I-"</p>
<p>Nick's arms wrapped around her body, crushing her to his chest, tilted his head, and claimed her lips in a bruising kiss.</p>
<p>Breaking away briefly, Nick murmured, "I don't want to wake up."</p>
<p>Judy didn't know if Nick wanted her to hear his words, said in a breathy, nearly reverent tone, but she wasn't able to respond because his mouth was again on hers, a low, possessive growl rumbling in his chest and she felt a sliver of desire slip down her spine.</p>
<p>Throwing her arms around his neck, she pulled him close, wanting as much of her body pressed against as much of him as she could.</p>
<p>Nick let out a hiss of pain and she broke away, from his lips. "I'm so sorry," she whispered in distress, not even sure if Nick could read her lips.</p>
<p>For a moment, she had completely forgotten that Nick was injured. His ribs were still healing, and she didn't want to hurt him.</p>
<p>"Don't-" he bit out, an almost angry edge to his voice and Judy wasn't sure if his anger was directed at her or elsewhere. "Don't ever be sorry, not for anything," he ground out as he buried his muzzle in her neck. "I think I've loved you from the moment you booted my stroller and you smoothly told me, carrot pen held out tauntingly, heavy-lidded eyes sparking with sly mischief, 'It's called a hustle, Sweetheart.'" He clutched her more tightly to his chest. "I didn't recognize what that warm, electric feeling was. I thought it was admiration. You had hustled me, and I should have been furious, but I wasn't, I was<em> impressed</em>. But the more time I spent with you, the stronger the feeling became, and I knew it was wrong, so I locked it up in a box and buried it in the deepest part of my heart. I convinced myself that I could pretend it wasn't there." He pulled away, looking her in her eyes. "And then I thought I had lost you and I just…couldn't lie to myself anymore." His eyes searched hers desperately.</p>
<p>She felt tears sting her eyes as her throat closed. "I couldn't lie to myself anymore either. It hurt too much," she admitted in a choked voice as she felt twin trails of salty wetness streak down her cheeks. "But I was scared, I still am, because no one will accept-"</p>
<p>"I don't give a rat's ass what anyone thinks," Nick snarled angrily. "Judy, I never thought you would ever return my feelings, no matter how much I hoped and wished that you would think of me as more than just a partner and a friend, but now," he shook his head vehemently, "I'm not giving you up. Not ever." His words were a fierce possessive growl, his thumbs brushing across the damp fur of her cheeks, her heart feeling over-full of the love she felt for the red fox who looked down at her as if she was the most important mammal in the world.</p>
<p>She gently pulled him down and lightly kissed him, still worried about aggravating his injuries.</p>
<p>Nick gave a growl and nipped her lip lightly before deepening the kiss, dragging her against his chest and lifting her up from the ground.</p>
<p>She broke away, eyes wide as she protested, knowing that he had to be in pain.</p>
<p>"I don't care," he whispered, apparently reading her thoughts in her actions as he claimed her lips again. "This is worth it."</p>
<p>Judy could feel herself blush as her eyes slipped closed and she reveled in the feel of his lips on hers; the heat of his body scorching past her fur to her skin, the scrape of sharp, carnivorous teeth, deadly claws digging into her shirt, and she never felt safer.</p>
<p>Nick gently set her back on her feet a low growl rumbling in his chest, causing a frisson of desire pooling between her legs.</p>
<p>The rumbling growl ceased and Nick rubbed his muzzle across her cheek before he buried it in her neck, his paws slipping beneath her shirt and she found herself letting out a soft moan.</p>
<p>Nick froze, claws digging through her fur and into her skin and she let out a gasp of surprise and confusion as he clutched her almost painfully close.</p>
<p>"Judy, I-" Nick began, his voice strained as she listened, her body quivering. "I want…" his voice trailed off.</p>
<p>Her heart pounded in her chest as Nick continued to clutch her to his chest, his muzzle still buried in her neck, his claws biting into her sides, almost as if he was fighting with himself. She gently pulled away from him and he quickly released her, looking almost panicked, as if he had done something wrong, or had scared her.</p>
<p>Quickly, she grabbed his muzzle, making sure he was looking at her. "I want you too," she told him as she kissed him, enjoying in the feel of his lips against hers and his sharp canines as they brushed against her tongue.</p>
<p>Nick's fingers flew into her fur, claws carefully scraping across her abdomen as he walked her back.</p>
<p>Her shirt was quickly pulled over her head and thrown to the floor. She buried her fingers beneath his shirt, marveling in the feel of his thick, rough fur, in comparison to her softer, shorter fur.</p>
<p>Nick growled as he nipped her lip before moving down and licking across her jaw, her paws moving from beneath his shirt, her fingers working each button until she was able to push it free and mold her body against his.</p>
<p>Suddenly lifted from her feet again, she found herself sprawled out beneath Nick upon their bed.</p>
<p>She looked up at him in surprise, not realizing that Nick had walked them into their bedroom.</p>
<p>Nick's gaze was dark, hungry, and strained.</p>
<p>Looking over at his shoulder, she could see the puckered skin of the scar where the wood had struck him. Reaching up, she traced the still healing wound and it hit her all over again at how close she had been to losing him. "Nick-"</p>
<p>Nick shook his head. "Could be dyin' right now and I wouldn't give a shit about any pain I'm in," he snarled, her eyes widening at his language, and his misunderstanding of her actions. "But I…I don't…want to hurt you," he admitted, his voice raspy as he nipped his way down her throat, sending a tingle of lust through her.</p>
<p>Judy swallowed, realizing she hadn't thought that far ahead. She wanted this, wanted him more than she had ever wanted anyone else. She had no sexual experience and she wasn't sorry for it. She had wanted to be intimate with someone who loved and respected her and who wasn't trying to change her or be used to scratch a very insistent itch.</p>
<p>The bucks she had gone out with had believed her dream of becoming a cop was nothing more than a phase and she truthfully had begun to believe that no one would ever be able to touch her heart or accept who she really was. Her dates had all ended the same way, a quick, disappointing kiss goodnight never to call them again.</p>
<p>Nick wanted her for her; he loved her and she wanted him. All of him. She wasn't sure if a bunny could mate with a fox, but she was willing to find out. "Please, Nick," she whispered as she caught his lips in another passionate kiss. "I want you," she told him, pulling away and meeting his heated gaze as she boldly reached down and brushed her fingers across the front of his pants, causing him to still above her.</p>
<p>Whatever resistance he had been harbouring seemed to leave him. He shuddered before he peppered kisses across her jaw, down her throat and across her clavicles. Drifting down further, he grasped the band of her jeans, quickly undoing the button and tearing open the zipper, dragging her pants and underwear from her body in one swift movement leaving her completely bare.</p>
<p>His emerald green gaze was nearly black with desire and Judy had never felt so vulnerable and powerful at the same time.</p>
<p>The look in his eyes as they travelled over her body scorched her flesh and caused her to quiver with need, the insistent throbbing between her legs begging for attention and the desire to be filled.</p>
<p>"Judy, I… You're so beautiful," he groaned as he buried his face in her stomach, licking down to her hip. "And I swear, if we can do this, I'll make it up to you. I want to worship every inch of you. I've dreamt about you, looking at me like you are right now, I'm… It's been a while and I'm not at my best, but knowing you want me as much as I want you, I can't wait," he growled in a ragged voice as his textured tongue rasped between her legs causing her back to arch from the bed as pleasure sparked through her.</p>
<p>Nick continued to lap at the wetness that formed between her legs causing a slow inferno to blaze through her body as a tingling wave of pleasure began to build.</p>
<p>Writhing at the attention, wanting more, needing more than the external stimulation he was giving her, she lightly dug her claws into his back. She wanted him inside her, she wanted to feel him, wanted him to make love to her.</p>
<p>Dragging his head away, Nick kicked off his pants, pulling himself up so that his eyes were level with hers. "If I hurt you, stop me," he ordered as he clutched her close, her skin burning beneath his probing touch.</p>
<p>He angled himself up and she felt him pressing against her opening before pushing himself into her.</p>
<p>Her walls stretched to accommodate him and it was a painful, uncomfortable feeling accompanied by a slight stinging sensation as he slowly moved within her, his girth growing and filling her causing her to clutch at him with her claws. Nick stopped, looking down at her in worry. "I've never been with anyone before," she told him and his eyes widened in shock.</p>
<p>"Why didn't you…?" he asked his whole body becoming rigid. He shifted, as if he was about to pull himself from her and she stopped him.</p>
<p>"Don't," she said as she shook her head. "I just want to…it feels strange," she admitted.</p>
<p>"Am I hurting you?" he asked intensely, most likely worried she would lie to give him what he desired, not realizing she wanted it as much as he did.</p>
<p>"Yes, but not… I just want to feel you," she told him truthfully as a pained expression crossed his face. "I'm not hurting you, am I?" she asked in sudden concern.</p>
<p>"No!" he answered. "Not… You just feel…" he clenched his teeth together, his breathing unsteady, his body shaking slightly. "You feel so good," he breathed out. "It's never felt…"</p>
<p>They stared at each other, a moment of intimacy, joined together as one and she held him close before bringing him down for a loving kiss.</p>
<p>She moved her hips, signaling to him that she wanted him to move and he so very carefully began to pull out only to push back within her.</p>
<p>His movements were deliciously slow, pleasure beginning to slowly coil within her, shifting her hips until she found an angle that felt good, Nick's thrusts struck a spot deep within her that caused her to moan in encouragement as his lips left hers.</p>
<p>Nick's breathing was heavy, his body trembling with the effort, his voice a whispered growl as he told her that he loved her.</p>
<p>She looked up at him, her body humming as she chased the filaments of pleasure that had begun to build in intensity.</p>
<p>Nick, shifted, pulling back, his pace slowed, and electricity began to spark behind her eyes as he ground himself into her. She found herself edging ever closer to that desirable, blissful end.</p>
<p>His pace changed, becoming quicker, harder, and she cried out Nick's name, almost like a chant as she met his thrusts with a frantic pace of her own stretching and burning with need as her back arched from the bed, the world behind her eyes became white, her body spasming, her muscles clamping down hard on Nick, the red fox tensing as he let out a desperate moan of her name that sounded like abject veneration.</p>
<p>Nick collapsed upon her and she felt him slip from her sensitive folds, her walls burning with slight sparks of pain, but feeling wonderfully content as Nick clutched her close, his eyes searching her gaze.</p>
<p>"I didn't hurt you, did I?" he wondered softly as he smoothed his padded fingers across her cheek.</p>
<p>Feeling pleasantly languid, but knowing that once the high of her orgasm wore off, that she would be sore, she shook her head. "I'm a little sore, but I'm good," she told him truthfully.</p>
<p>Nick relaxed, his eyes slipping to half-mast as he gazed at her lovingly. "I love you," he murmured as he kissed her gently.</p>
<p>Leaning into the kiss she smiled as she replied, "I love you too."</p>
<p>Allowing him to tuck her into his side, she lay in their bed listening to Nick's breathing slow, her eyes closing in contentment as she recognized that their relationship had irrevocably changed.</p>
<p>"Nick?" she asked, rolling over so that she was no longer spooning the fox.</p>
<p>"Hmm?" he asked as he opened a sleepy eye.</p>
<p>"I don't want to hide," she told him. "I don't want to pretend that we aren't together," she stated emphatically, as if daring him to refute her words.</p>
<p>"I don't either," Nick replied, opening his other eye as he gazed at her seriously before quirking a wry grin at her. "So, we're together now, huh?" he asked smoothly as she gave him a playful glare.</p>
<p>"Well, if you don't want-" she began archly, pulling away from the warmth of Nick's body causing the red fox's eyes to widen before Judy found herself on her back, Nick's body running the length of hers, her arms trapped by Nick's paws as he pushed them up over her head.</p>
<p>She looked at him in surprise as he growled low in his throat. "You're mine now, Judith Laverne Hopps." He gave her a superior smirk.</p>
<p>Judy returned his smirk, "Nicholas Piberius Wilde," she replied smoothly, "I believe you are<em> mine</em>," she growled possessively and Nick gave a brilliant smile.</p>
<p>"Always," he murmured as he brushed his muzzle across her cheek and he let go of her wrists, pulling her back into his chest. She contentedly closed her eyes and fell into a blissful sleep, knowing that what ever challenges, hatred, or bigotry that lay ahead of them, that she could stand tall against it as long as Nick was by her side.</p><hr/>
<p>
        <strong>Yay! They finally confessed and are together! XD</strong>
      </p>
<p>
        <strong>As a side note, I know Foxes have knots like dogs, but I figured that since the mammals of Zootopia have evolved to walk upright, that the whole knotting/tying thing would be something that was a lost adaptation. (I am probably overthinking this, but that's kinda my thing...)</strong>
      </p></div></div></div>
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<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Chapter 16</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heya all!! Hope everyone is doing well!!<br/>Thank you to everyone leaving kuddos and comments, I seriously live for them!</p>
<p>And now, please enjoy!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p><strong>Judy</strong> pulled away from Nick's insistent grasp as he teasingly told her to call in sick to work, pulling her back from the elevator.</p>
      <p>Smiling and shaking her head, she gave him a quick kiss. "I'll see you after work," she told him, resisting the temptation to give in and stay home, have another 'not get out of bed day,' but knowing that as blissfully happy as she was right now, the world didn't stop moving because she and Nick had confessed their love for each other.</p>
      <p>"Fine," he said with an exaggerated huff. "Have a good day then," he said with accepted dejection.</p>
      <p>"I will try," she mumbled, not looking forward to being stuck in the basement with Officer Growle and transcribing Cold Case files. On the other paw, it was possible that she would find something, one case that would finally show the pattern that she knew was there, just beyond her line of sight, taunting her with its hidden existence.</p>
      <p>"Listen, Carrots," Nick began shifting from foot to foot as he brushed the back of his neck with a paw.</p>
      <p>"Nick, I'm going to be late," she told him, smiling at him to relieve any sting her words would have.</p>
      <p>"I know, just…" he looked at her nervously, his agitation enough to give her pause.</p>
      <p>She didn't push him, waiting patiently for him to gather himself to tell her what he needed to. It flashed briefly in her mind that he was going to tell her that he regretted everything that had happened yesterday, but quickly dismissed the notion as ridiculous given Nick's very real desire to keep her home today.</p>
      <p>"It was because of me that you got put in Records with Officer Growle," Nick confessed in a rush of words and Judy felt her heart constrict.</p>
      <p>"Nick," she began slowly, her words gentle. "I don't blame you for that. I don't particularly like doing data entry, but you nearly died. You're healing and-"</p>
      <p>"I texted Chief Bogo and got you assigned to Records," he quickly refuted her words.</p>
      <p>Judy froze. "You did what?" she asked in a low, steady voice trying to ignore the wave of emotions that suddenly crashed into her, crushing her lungs and making it hard for her to breathe.</p>
      <p>His ears drooped and he looked at the floor, unable to meet her accusing gaze. "I nearly lost you," he whispered, his voice quavering, "and the thought of you out there, on the streets, with another partner…" He shook his head helplessly.</p>
      <p>She had never understood the phrase 'blind fury', but she did now. Her vision was clouded, her ears ringing, and there was a bitter taste in her mouth. She tried to speak but no words came out as rage stole her voice.</p>
      <p>Digging her claws into her palm, she closed her eyes and took a few calming breaths to make sure she wasn't going to say something she could never take back. "I joined the ZPD before you," she managed to grind out. "I survived on my own until you joined and became my partner. I don't need you to protect me." She opened her eyes and caught his guilty, fearful gaze.</p>
      <p>"That's what partners do!" Nick defended in a pleading tone.</p>
      <p>He wasn't wrong, she acknowledged as guilt slid coldly through her, but it still didn't make his actions<em> right</em>. She glared at him. "You stopped me from doing <em>my job</em> because-"</p>
      <p>"I'm sorry," Nick interrupted. "I know what I did was wrong," he admitted, "I knew it the moment I texted Chief Bogo. I know I had no right and it was selfish, but I couldn't trust anyone else to be your partner," he looked at her in the eyes. "I am so, so sorry, Judy."</p>
      <p>She glared at him, fury flushing her skin as she tried to gather her chaotic thoughts into a coherent reply. "And if you never get your hearing back, what then? Desk duty for me for my entire career? Relegated to Records to keep me safe because you don't think anyone else is capable of being my partner?" Her words were blunt, cutting, and so very cruel, but they were honest.</p>
      <p>Nick flinched, his ears plastered against his head as his shoulders slumped, his posture radiating defeat, his emerald gaze heavy and tormented.</p>
      <p>Normally, her heart would have softened; she would have felt something like forgiveness trying to blossom within her, but there was nothing but anger and fire and betrayal and it obliterated any kind sentiment.</p>
      <p>"No," Nick replied in a soft, shaking voice. "I-" he swallowed roughly. "I wanted to pretend for a little bit, that I would be coming back."</p>
      <p>Fury continued to scorch her mind as she stared at him, at a loss for words, her heart twisting painfully in her chest. Shaking her head, she took a step away from him. She couldn't deal with this right now, she was too distraught, too hurt, and too conflicted. "I've got to go," she said as she spun on her heel, striding into the elevator; Nick deathly quiet behind her.</p>
      <p>Pulling down the doors, she blocked Nick's devastated expression from view. Blinking back angry tears, she took a deep breath, despair and anger fighting for dominance of her emotional state, neither gaining any ground over the other.</p>
      <p>Slowly making her way to the subway station, she waited for the next train, staring blankly at the platform until the train pulled in front of her. Blindly, she shuffled into the car, her emotions having cannibalized each other leaving her feeling cold and empty.</p>
      <p>Logically, she understood Nick's actions, but that didn't mean she could forgive him for treating her like a delicate flower that was unable to take care of herself. He had gone above her head, straight to Chief Bogo, and she wasn't sure if this, or the fact the Chief had acquiescence to Nick's suggestion, was worse.</p>
      <p>How many times would she have to prove herself to the ZPD? Hadn't she already done this time and time again?</p>
      <p>Frustrated anger flickered to life and she ground her teeth in irritation, seething the entire way, wondering if there was anyone in her life who could understand how infuriating it was to be constantly treated like she would break because she was a <em>bunny</em>.</p>
      <p>Hearing the electronic voice announcing City Central Station, she stepped out of the car and strode to the escalator, her previous listless movements now fueled by righteous indignation.</p>
      <p>She planned to march right into Chief Bogo's office and give him a piece of her mind...</p>
      <p>A very respectful piece of her mind, she amended as she stepped onto the moving step of the escalator, tapping her foot impatiently as she slowly rose, two hippos chatting in font of her blocking the way for a speedier ascent.</p>
      <p>Sighing in resignation she glanced upwards, her gaze settling on the giant clock that had rung the changing times for the station for the past fifty years.</p>
      <p>Feeling her stomach sink into the floor, she stared at the black clock hands in growing shock. Digging her phone from her pocket, she clutched it tightly as she realized that the City Central clock was right on time, and she wasn't. She was already twenty minutes late.</p>
      <p>Instead of confronting Chief Bogo about his assigning her to Officer Growle, she would be slinking in, hoping that she wasn't about to be reprimanded. Fighting with your overprotective boyfriend didn't sound like a satisfactory excuse to give to Chief Bogo or Officer Growle to explain her tardiness.</p>
      <p>"This day keeps getting better and better," she ground out between her clenched teeth as she burst free of the escalator and ran as fast as she could from the station to the precinct.</p>
      <p>Trying and failing to think of a good reason that she was late for her shift, she realized she would have to tell Officer Growle the truth and hope she didn't get in too much trouble. For being a bear who moved at a sloth-like pace and only a couple years maximum from retirement, Officer Growle was very punctual due to his donut war with Clawhauser. Unfortunately, it meant that Growle would have already been there for close to half an hour.</p>
      <p>Thankfully, the precinct wasn't far from the station and she was only twenty-three minutes late by this point.</p>
      <p>Dashing through the precinct's doors, she narrowly missed smashing face-first into the legs of an officer.</p>
      <p>"Sorry," she apologized to the grey wolf, blushing in embarrassment as she turned, threw a wave at Clawhauser and ran for the stairwell that would take her down into the basement. Passing through the long hallway, the boiler on the right, she opened the door of the records room and stopped dead in her tracks.</p>
      <p>There, lying prone upon the ground, manila folders and reports strewn around on the floor, was Officer Growle.</p>
      <p>A heartbeat later and she was kneeling by his side, shouting at him while trying to find a pulse through his thick fur. It looked as though he had fallen forwards, taking a box of files with him, the cardboard box laying on its side a few feet away.</p>
      <p>"Officer Growle!" she pleaded as she shook the large bear, her eyes flitting over to the desk. Hopping up, she grabbed the phone and hit the button for reception.</p>
      <p>A moment later, Clawhauser picked up the phone. "Hey, Judy, is-"</p>
      <p>"I need you to call an ambulance," she interrupted, her voice higher than it usually was as she tried to keep it steady. "Officer Growle is down and I need someone to help me roll him over, I can't do it myself."</p>
      <p>She didn't wait for Clawhauser to reply, hanging up the phone and jumping down, feeling utterly useless as she strained to hear for the sound of running footsteps.</p>
      <p>Officer Pennington burst through the door first, followed by Anderson and Johnson. The elephant, lion, and polar bear were able to easily move Officer Growle from his position on his stomach and onto his back.</p>
      <p>Officer Anderson placed his paws on Growle's chest and began chest compressions as they waited for the paramedics.</p>
      <p>An indeterminable amount of time passed before a female deer and a lion entered the room holding a stretcher and carrying a medical bag.</p>
      <p>Judy watched in desperate horror as the paramedics worked on Officer Growle, questioning her as to when she found him, what steps they had provided for his care, and if he was taking any medications specifically for his heart that she knew of.</p>
      <p>She had dutifully answered what she could, only able to give the time she had entered the room and her actions followed by those of her colleagues. She was unaware if Officer Growle took any medications as she had never seen him take anything and he had never mentioned anything.</p>
      <p>Their faces were grim as they tried to restart his heart, checking his pupils for dilation and his lungs for active breathing.</p>
      <p>The lion, whose name she had promptly forgotten, shook his head, pulling back and glancing at the time. Words of possible heart attack were whispered between the two, the lion noting things on a clipboard.</p>
      <p>They moved Officer Growle's body onto the stretcher and covered him with a crisp white sheet.</p>
      <p>"We are so sorry," the deer, Rebecca, Judy believed her name was, comforted them as she encompassed the whole room.</p>
      <p>Judy swallowed roughly; her tongue as dry as the air in Sahara Square as she watched the paramedics lift Officer Growle from the floor and take him slowly from the room.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p><strong>Nick</strong> wasn't sure how long he stood in their kitchen, drowning in his own despair, his claws digging into the pads of his palms as he fisted his paws tightly.</p>
      <p>If he had kept his big mouth shut, Judy never would have known of his perfidy. Though possible Chief Bogo would let something slip, he would take odds that the likelihood of this would have been low.</p>
      <p>It was just like him, though. Nick knew how to ruin a good thing. Now, Judy was furious with him and he wasn't sure if he had just destroyed the best thing in his life, or if Judy would be able to forgive him. Closing his eyes in frustration, his shoulders sagged in defeat. He had known his actions were wrong, selfish even, but knowing this hadn't stopped him. He had apologized, but even he knew this wasn't enough. Never having been involved in an actual relationship before, he felt singularly out of his depth as to how to fix the enormous clusterfuck he had managed to create.</p>
      <p>By this point, he had begun to pace back and forth, his skin crawling with excess energy brought on by fear, a smidgen of despair, and a huge wobbly dollop of the unknown.</p>
      <p>Knowing he needed to spill his worries into another's ear, he marched to the elevator and left his apartment. Deciding against public transportation by acknowledging that he needed to release some of the tension that was accruing in his muscles, he began his search on foot.</p>
      <p>After texting Finnick and receiving no reply, he figured that the fennec fox was busy parting poor, clueless mammals from their hard-earned cash.</p>
      <p>Beginning in Sahara Square, he took the train to Tundra Town and found no sign of the diminutive fox. Checking Finnick's favourite haunts, he made his way to City Centre, where Finnick tended to park his van at the end of the day.</p>
      <p>Down a side street, he found Finnick's van parked close to the side of a brick building.</p>
      <p>It was unusual behavior for his friend, to not be out hustling on a weekday, especially a Monday.</p>
      <p>Frowning, he strode up to the back door, wondering if Finnick was sick. It would be just like the fennec fox to not tell anyone he was feeling under the weather.</p>
      <p>He paused with his paw lifted to knock, noting that he hadn't heard from his friend since Judy had dragged him into Happytown. It was possible Finnick was having a hard time dealing with old wounds that had been torn open during the incident.</p>
      <p>Nick internally gave himself a much-deserved kick for not having checked in with Finnick sooner.</p>
      <p>Taking a deep breath, expecting his friend to be in an especially bad mood, he knocked. Waiting patiently, he knocked again and shouted at the diminutive fox, letting him know who was stupid enough to disturb him. The last thing Nick needed was a baseball bat to the face.</p>
      <p>Waiting a few more minutes with no sign of movement, he wandered to the front of the van and looked through the window. He couldn't see anything out of the ordinary; empty take-out containers, the corner of Finnick's bed, a blanket, and three empty water bottles littered the visible portion of the interior.</p>
      <p>The van appeared empty of Finnick himself.</p>
      <p>Rocking back on his heels, he contemplated whether he should try finding the fox in one of the many shops around the area or stay put and wait for Finnick to come to him.</p>
      <p>Opting for the latter, he tried the driver's side door and found it locked. Walking around to the passenger side, which he was barely able to access due to how close to the brick Finnick had parked, he found this door to be open, which wasn't unusual.</p>
      <p>In case Finnick ever locked himself out, he tended to leave the passenger side open. Most mammals never checked the passenger side door and to be honest, most mammals wanted nothing to do with the rusted-out beater anyway.</p>
      <p>Opening the door, he hopped into the passenger seat and closed the door behind him. Crawling into the back, his blood suddenly ran cold.</p>
      <p>From the outside, he had been unable to see the destruction that had been wrought within. Bedding was overturned, claw marks scored the carpeted floor and upholstered sides, bits of fur and blood were torn out and splattered, indicating that Finnick had not gone gently.</p>
      <p>Nick's heart sank into his stomach as a wave of darkness crashed over him so quickly, he almost lost his footing.</p>
      <p>Trying to breathe through the rapid palpitations of his heart, he took out his phone, his paw shaking wildly as his finger hovered over Judy's name, but after a moment, he put away his phone. He needed to talk to Judy in the flesh, not over a text.</p>
      <p>Scrambling from the van, he tried not to disturb anything. He needed to get Judy and bring her back here so they could piece together what had happened to their friend.</p>
      <p>Closing the passenger-side door, he ran to Precinct One, located two blocks away.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p><strong>Judy's</strong> mind was blank, her ears ringing loudly in her head.</p>
      <p>She was in shock.</p>
      <p>She found herself sitting in a chair without being aware of having been led to it.</p>
      <p>The records room was oppressively quiet as a few other officers loitered by the door, Pennington, Johnson, and Anderson looking as lost as she felt.</p>
      <p>Judy felt as if she should be consoling the other officers, they had worked with Officer Growle for much longer than she had, but all she could think was that she was responsible for the death of another partner.</p>
      <p>A tear burned down her cheek as she stared unseeingly ahead. She had been in time to save Nick, she hadn't been in time to save Officer Growle, but she could have been. If she hadn't fought with Nick, if she hadn't been late, then maybe…</p>
      <p>Swirling, recriminating thoughts of 'what ifs' and 'if onlys' ran through her head, unable to come to terms with Officer Growle's sudden death.</p>
      <p>Death was something every police officer was trained to expect; their own and others. But a natural death, this was something she felt oddly unequipped to deal with. He had been fine on Friday. They had talked, he had gone about his work with slow precision and she had waved goodbye to him at the end of her shift and told him to have a good weekend.</p>
      <p>But she knew this was a ridiculous line of reasoning. Sometimes there were early warning signs, sometimes there weren't, but this thought did not assuage her guilt in the slightest.</p>
      <p>She felt cold.</p>
      <p>Her colleagues had come in to talk to her and she knew she had answered, only emerging from her daze when Grizzoli and Fangmeyer had begun to clean up the files on the floor.</p>
      <p>Slipping from the chair, she stopped the two officers in their efforts. "I'll do it," she said, kneeling on the floor. "Please?" she asked them, feeling the need to do this for Officer Growle. The wolf and tiger shared a look before giving a nod and leaving her alone in her task.</p>
      <p>With trembling fingers, she reached over and righted the box, dragging it towards her.</p>
      <p>Slowly, almost reverently, she began to place each of the files back in the box, her eyes glazed over with tears as she tried to read what was written on the tabs.</p>
      <p>Dashing away the wretched wetness, she focused upon her task, heart twisting with sorrow.</p>
      <p>Not long after she was left alone, Clawhauser's voice, drifted over her shoulder, gently informing her that Chief Bogo wanted to see her. She was pretty sure she had replied something to the effect that she would when she was done, but she may only have grunted an assent, she couldn't recall.</p>
      <p>She wasn't sure how long she sat, sorting papers into the correct folders, but it was as if an eternity and a split second happened simultaneously. Gathering up another sheaf of strewn about papers, she tried not to think about the fact that Officer Growle had been lying where she now sat, his body cooling with death.</p>
      <p>Staring hard at the floor, she found her focus sharpening at a mark that had been scratched into the surface of the light blue linoleum.</p>
      <p>Sliding a folder away, she found herself staring at a word that caused her blood to run cold.</p>
      <p>GUILTY</p>
      <p>It had been carved into the linoleum, deeper in some places than others, but she knew for a fact that this had not been there on Friday when she had left.</p>
      <p>Although there were officers who worked the weekend, most never made their way down into Records. Her mind buzzed as grief was ruthlessly, if only momentarily, shoved to the side in favour of a more pressing and salient matter.</p>
      <p>She recalled the position she had found Officer Growle, one arm outstretched, close to her desk, a paw buried beneath a pile of papers and files right where the damning word had been etched.</p>
      <p>Had Officer Growle, in the moments before his death, carved this word into the floor? If so, why? If he had realized that there was something wrong with him, why hadn't he called for help, or an ambulance? Why had he spent his last precious moments scoring the word for…who? Her?</p>
      <p>Officer Growle would have known that she would be the one most likely to enter the room first. The word had also been hidden from view, but who was he hiding it from?</p>
      <p>Even though there would be foot traffic with the discovery of his body, she was positive that if the message was not meant specifically for her, that it was incredibly important. More important than his life.</p>
      <p>She traced the word with her finger. <em>Who was guilty?</em> she wondered. <em>Officer Growle? Someone else?</em></p>
      <p>Looking over her shoulder at Officer Growle's desk, she stood and walked over to the chair he had been sitting in. It had been spun away from the computer indicating that he had stood and walked a few steps towards the door, the box of folders in his paws. If he had felt chest pains, why hadn't he tried to get to either of the three phones, the one at his desk, the one at hers, or his cell phone, which was sitting on his desk?</p>
      <p>It made no sense.</p>
      <p>Unless...</p>
      <p>Nick burst through the door, his chest heaving with exertion, eyes wide with fear and distress.</p>
      <p>"Judy!" he shouted as he practically pounced on her, stumbling slightly before he righted himself and dragged her up against his chest, his heart beating wildly in her ears. "I couldn't…everyone was talking too fast or too slow and everyone's faces… I caught your name and Growle's and…"</p>
      <p>"I'm okay," she soothed softly, interrupting his frantic speech. "Well…I'm not, but-" she buried her face in Nick's neck, knowing that whatever she was about to say wouldn't be heard by Nick anyway, so she didn't continue her thought.</p>
      <p>Nick placed her down on the ground, pulling away from her as he looked searchingly into her eyes. "What happened?" he asked, his voice trembling with emotion.</p>
      <p>"I found…Officer Growle. I tried. I was late and he was… I couldn't," she tried to calm down, burning tears sliding down her cold cheeks as she relived the moment that she found the old bear. "They think it was a heart attack."</p>
      <p>Nick's paw smoothed the fur on the top of her head in a gentle caress, his words of murmured sympathy falling upon her own deaf ears as her mind whorled uneasily, the prickling finger of dread slowly slipping down her spine as she stared at the word scratched into the old, worn linoleum.</p>
      <p>"Judy…Finnick's been taken," he suddenly told her in a shaking voice.</p>
      <p>Her gaze snapped to his. She opened her mouth but no sound came out. Swallowing roughly, she tried again. "What do you mean, taken?"</p>
      <p>"I went to his van, there was a struggle inside, claw marks, fur, and blood. He's been kitnapped, and I don't know…" his voice broke. "What if he's already dead?" he asked miserably. "I don't even know how long he's been gone for."</p>
      <p>"Nick," she began, her body trembling as a chill that had nothing to do with the temperature of the room clung to her very bones. "We'll find him," she promised, the crushing weight of guilt reasserting itself. Glancing down at her feet, she voiced a thought that she didn't want to, but knew she needed to. "Do you think he was taken because of me? Because of Happytown?"</p>
      <p>"I don't know," Nick answered, rubbing up and down her arms as if he was able to feel how chilled she had become.</p>
      <p>"Nick," she whispered miserably. "I think Officer Growle was murdered," she murmured, her voice so soft that it was barely audible to her own ears, but Nick understood her.</p>
      <p>He flinched back in shock and she grabbed his muzzle silencing him. His eyes widening in surprise at her actions. She motioned with her head to the word that lay in all of its accusatory glory by her foot.</p>
      <p>Letting go of his muzzle, he stared down at Officer Growle's dying message and back up to her, his eyes full of confusion.</p>
      <p>"I know it sounds crazy, but-"</p>
      <p>"I believe you," Nick quickly interrupted her, his voice shaking as he shivered. "If you think that's what happened, then I'm not going to question your instincts, but why-" he stepped close, his voice barely audible, "-would someone murder Officer Growle and make it look like an accident?"</p>
      <p>Pulling away enough so that Nick could see her words, she replied, "I don't know," thankful that she wasn't going to have to try and convince Nick of her sudden conclusion.</p>
      <p>Taking a quick breath, mind racing, she stuffed a box in her head full of the sorrowful, fearful, chaotic emotions that were attempting to crush her. She needed to put all of it somewhere for now, later she would take everything out to be examined, but presently, it was the only way she would be able to function.</p>
      <p>"Help me," she said as she stepped back, quickly taking a picture of the word before pocketing her phone and moving to pull at one side of a filing cabinet that sat beneath her desk.</p>
      <p>"What are we doing?" he hissed as he helped her slide the cabinet over the scored floor.</p>
      <p>It looked awkward and a little out of place, but it was the best she could do. "We need to cover this up," she told him. "If I'm right and he was murdered, it was done in a police station with a precinct full of ZPD officers."</p>
      <p>"You think one of ours did it?" Nick asked in a disbelieving voice.</p>
      <p>"I don't know," she said shaking her head, "but I think it would be better if we didn't let anyone else know, especially because I really hope that I'm wrong."</p>
      <p>Nick gave a grim nod of acknowledgement. "Do you think this is connected to Finnick's disappearance?" he wondered.</p>
      <p>"We have no evidence that Officer Growle's possible homicide is connected to anything else," she replied. "Until we find any link between the two, we'll pursue the events as two separate instances."</p>
      <p>Nick looked at her skeptically. "There is a connection," he voiced slowly, his mind making a connection that she was unable to make.</p>
      <p>"What?" she wondered.</p>
      <p>"You," he answered in a low, grim voice.</p>
      <p>"That's…" her voice trailed off as she turned Nick's theory around in her head. "It could just be a coincidence," she argued, though her tone contained a hint of apprehension.</p>
      <p>"You know what they say about coincidence…?" Nick asked, a somber expression upon his face. "There's no such thing," he finished when she didn't answer him. "We need to go to Bogo," he insisted. "Coincidence or not, if this is all connected and someone in the ZPD is a dirty cop, we can't trust anyone to help us find Finnick or figure out who may have killed Officer Growle."</p>
      <p>Judy bit her lip in thought.</p>
      <p>"Judy, besides Clawhauser -who isn't in a position to help us- Bogo's the only one we know we can trust," Nick insisted.</p>
      <p>"Okay," she finally agreed. "But how much do you think we should tell him?"</p>
      <p>Without pause, Nick answered, "Everything."</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>
        <strong>I know! Things are going to start getting a little crazy. But I hope you all enjoyed!</strong>
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<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Chapter 17</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey all, sorry this chapter took a bit to post. I had no internet for a bit there, anyway, I have it again and it is all good!!</p>
<p>Thank you to everyone who has left comments and given kuddos, I appreciate them all soooo much!! XD</p>
<p>Anyway, Beta read by the lovely Marie Allen.</p>
<p>Please enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p><strong>Nick</strong> shifted nervously from foot to foot as he watched Chief Bogo's expression intently.</p>
      <p>'Hopps,' Chief Bogo began, his face solemn, 'go home,' he ordered. 'Today-'</p>
      <p>'Chief!' Judy interrupted. 'I know it sounds far-fetched, but I have proof,' she argued, placing her phone upon the desk, the picture of Officer Growle's last word lit up on the screen. 'He was dying and instead of calling for help, he scratched this into the floor,' she insisted.</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo stared at the image as Judy laid out her clandestine activities, informing him about Happytown, what was found there, Finnick's involvement, and his subsequent disappearance. Chief Bogo allowed Judy to finish her recitation without interrupting, his expression vacillating between incredulous anger and horrified concern.</p>
      <p>'If I'm right about everything we have speculated on so far, this is big,' Judy offered.</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo eyed them both speculatively. 'And if you're wrong?' he asked.</p>
      <p>'Do you think I am?' she countered.</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo remained silent, his eyes flicking from the photo on the phone, to Judy, to Nick, before settling somewhere to the right of Judy's shoulder. 'All of your evidence is circumstantial at best, biased reaching at worst.' He held up a hoof, silencing their imminent protestations. 'I think it would be best if you took your Union mandated bereavement leave.'</p>
      <p>'But Chief!' Judy protested.</p>
      <p>The Cape buffalo stood to his full height and passed an assessing eye over both of them. 'If during this period of leave you and Officer Wilde feel the need to look into matters of a case that is not assigned to you, I know I can't stop you because I am unaware of these activities,' he said as his shoulders slumped slightly, looking exhausted. 'If it's true that Officer Growle was murdered here, in the precinct, it was either a professional hit or an inside job. Either way, whoever did it wanted it to be ruled as natural causes, which means I will discretely inquire with the M.E. to determine if this was the case. I will not upset the officers in this building or Officer Growle's family with wild speculation and accusations of murder. I will call you if I hear anything and I will see if I can determine why Officer Growle may have scratched that accusation into the floor.' He dragged a hoof down his face. 'For now, you two are on your own. Though in these circumstances, that may not be a bad thing.' He took out a pen from the drawer and scribbled a number onto a notepad, tearing away the paper and sliding it to Judy. 'That is my personal cell number, if you find anything, call, night or day, and I will answer. Be careful and good luck in finding your friend.'</p>
      <p>Judy gently touched his shoulder to get his attention and gave him a questioning look.</p>
      <p>Nick shook his head, he had nothing to add or anything he wished to ask.</p>
      <p>'Officer Wilde,' Chief Bogo began but then paused, frowning as he looked away uncomfortably, grabbing the pen and paper again.</p>
      <p>'Yeah, Chief?' he asked, surprising the Cape buffalo. 'I can read lips,' he explained.</p>
      <p>'Are you sure you're up for this?' he asked. 'You're still on medical leave.'</p>
      <p>'My friend's been kitnapped and if Judy had been on time…' his voice trailed off as he looked at his girlfriend and partner, the realization striking him at what might have happened to Judy if she had walked in on the murder being committed or had been in the room before it was about to happen. It didn't bear thinking. 'I'm deaf, not incapacitated.' He looked towards Judy, catching her eye before turning his attention back to Chief Bogo.</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo gave a nod of acceptance. 'I'll expedite Officer Growle's autopsy results,' he said as he gave them a nod of dismissal. 'Good luck and be careful.'</p>
      <p>Nick and Judy both gave firm nods, turning and leaving the Chief's office, their expressions grim and troubled.</p>
      <p>Their colleagues gave them sympathetic, sidelong glances, but they were only approached by a clearly distraught Clawhauser. They talked briefly with him before they left the precinct.</p>
      <p>Stopping on the sidewalk, Judy turned to Nick. 'How did you get here?' she wondered.</p>
      <p>'I ran,' he replied, explaining further when she goggled at him. 'I found Finnick's van two blocks away.'</p>
      <p>Judy bit her lip. 'Do you think it's safe?' she asked him.</p>
      <p>'If anyone had eyes on the van, they've already noticed that I was there, so I guess we'll find out if we encounter any mammals with murderous intent,' he replied offhandedly even though his heartrate increased with worried apprehension at the possibility of a violent, possibly deadly encounter.</p>
      <p>Quickly making their way back to Finnick's van, he and Judy scanned the area, Judy's ears moving and twitching, trying to pick up any noises, their eyes searching while he scented the air, not picking up any particular scent over the many that already covered the area.</p>
      <p>At a nod from Judy, they slipped around to the passenger side of the van and crawled in through the passenger side door. Sitting in the darkened interior, he studied their surroundings with a keener eye than he had on his previous visit.</p>
      <p>Judy moved from the passenger seat into the back, Nick following a moment later as he gathered himself to face the events that had transpired while he had been blissfully unaware of his friend's plight.</p>
      <p>Using their phones, they lit up the interior, not wanting to risk opening the back doors of the van to let daylight in.</p>
      <p>'These are from Finnick,' he said softly as he traced a set of claw marks that had been scored into the cheap plastic of the molded interior.</p>
      <p>Judy nodded. 'Most of the claw marks are, except for this one,' she said as she illuminated a set of four claw marks that had torn through the brown carpet that lined the back of the van.</p>
      <p>Judy hovered her paw over the marks, indicating that whoever had left them, was bigger than the diminutive fennec fox. She moved her phone around, searching for any other clues than may offer insight as to what happened.</p>
      <p>'Bat's in its place, so it's hard to say if he took a swing or not,' he observed.</p>
      <p>'Maybe he knew who it was,' Judy suggested as she picked up a clump of fur squinting at it in the dark. 'This looks too dark to be Finnick's,' she said as she handed it to Nick, who inspected it.</p>
      <p>'Weasel,' he said knowingly, able to tell from the smell alone, though not a weasel he was personally acquainted with. Turning his attention back to the larger set of claw marks he studied them. 'These are definitely from a mammal bigger than a weasel, something bigger than me,' Nick said, his eyes scanning the floor to see if there were any other tufts of fur that would give them an insight into who or what the second mammal who had taken Finnick was.</p>
      <p>Scouring the rest of the van, they found no other clues to Finnick's disappearance but for a fast food receipt dated two days ago, which gave them a time window for when Finnick had been taken. The fennec fox had been gone for no more than two days from when Nick had found the van.</p>
      <p>Finally accepting that they would find nothing else from the van, they exited the vehicle and slunk from the alley, trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible. Neither one of them voiced any opinions on what they had found or what they hadn't, each sunk in their own pensive, worried thoughts.</p>
      <p>There had been a part of Nick who had clung onto a false hope that Finnick had just gone out to pull a hustle after having a throw down and emerging victorious with some thugs who hadn't known who they were messing with, but after returning to the van, he had to acknowledge his greatest fears were confirmed: Finnick had been abducted.</p>
      <p>Nick's mind was frantic, adrenalin pumping through his veins, fear clouding thoughts even though he knew that panicking would not help them find Finnick any quicker and could in fact hinder their search.</p>
      <p>The problem was they had no real leads, at least nothing they could immediately use. Frustration gripped him, causing him to suggest they go back to the safety of their apartment and re-group, reexamine what they had found, and hopefully determine their next course of action, but Judy shook her head at this.</p>
      <p>'Before we go home…I'd like to stop at Officer Growle's house and give my condolences to his wife,' she explained.</p>
      <p>Nick looked at her in surprise, frustration and uneasiness filling him. 'Judy,' he cautioned, believing that she wanted to question Officer Growle's widow in the hopes of gaining insight into Officer Growle's inscribed accusation or admission.</p>
      <p>'I'm not… I never met her. Cassandra,' Judy explained. 'But Officer Growle used to talk about her all the time and it sounded like he loved her very much. I know that I didn't work with him for very long, but I was the one who…who found him and…' her voice trailed off. 'We have to find Finnick. The more time that passes, the more likely…' she didn't finish her explanation, she didn't need to. They both knew that the longer a mammal was missing, the less likely it was that they would be found either at all or alive. 'We'll take a cab and I'll only be five minutes I promise.'</p>
      <p>Nick gave a stiff nod of acceptance, lifting a paw and hailing a passing cab. Judy gave the address to the driver, a fox, who gave Nick an appraising look; one Nick returned, eyes narrowed in warning, indicating that he would not accept any 'detours' or increase in fare once they reached their destination.</p>
      <p>The driver's eyes slid away and they rode in silence, he and Judy too consumed by their own thoughts and aware of other ears that would be privy to their conversation.</p>
      <p>Pulling up in front of a neat bungalow just outside of the Rainforest District on the edge of Sahara square, they hopped out and Judy talked with the driver, who gave a nod at whatever it was Judy had requested.</p>
      <p>Judging by the cab driver putting the taxi into park and settling into a comfortable position, Nick suspected Judy had asked for the driver to wait for them.</p>
      <p>Making their way up to the front door, painted a cheery colour of yellow which stood out against the cornflower blue of the siding, Judy took a breath and knocked on the door.</p>
      <p>They waited patiently, not knowing if Cassandra was even home or if she would answer the door after hearing about her husband's death.</p>
      <p>A few moments later, an older male brown bear opened the door, looming over them with haggard disapproval. his eyes narrowed before recognition filled them.</p>
      <p>'Come in,' the bear said, stepping back and moving a paw, indicating they were to enter.</p>
      <p>Slowly, they stepped into the neatly decorated home, following as the bear in front of them led them down a short hallway and into a small living room where a distraught sow sat, her fingers clutching a crumpled white handkerchief, her back bowed with grief.</p>
      <p>Nick couldn't hear Judy's words, positioned as he was at her side, but Cassandra opened her eyes and said, 'Thank you.'</p>
      <p>Judy slowly approached, placing a comforting paw on Cassandra's much larger one, giving it a gentle squeeze.</p>
      <p>Cassandra appeared to rally herself as the bear who had let them into the house moved to stand behind her.</p>
      <p>'This is my brother, Adrian,' Cassandra explained. 'He-' she took a shuddering breath. '-came over when…'</p>
      <p>Judy gave a small nod of understanding. Giving the sow another quick squeeze of her paw, the doe stepped back and Adrian walked around the couch to see them out, indicating that Judy must have announced their intention to depart.</p>
      <p>'I'm sorry for your loss, ma'am,' Nick said softly, Cassandra giving a nod and possibly a thank you, but Nick was unable to read her lips, the words too jumbled together.</p>
      <p>He followed Judy back down the hall and out the front door, Adrian exiting the house with them.</p>
      <p>Studying the older bear more closely, Nick noticed that he appeared angry and frazzled.</p>
      <p>'He was a good boar,' Adrian said in response to a sentiment that Judy had expressed to Officer Growle's brother-in-law. Dragging a paw through the fur at the top of his head, Adrian's shoulders slumped, defeat now replacing the earlier agitation and anger. 'My sister was so happy when Peter took the position down in Records,' he began. 'Having him working Vice was hard on her; the constant worry, the bad hours, the <em>culture </em>and the-' he cut himself off from what he had been about to say and continued, '-there were some tough times, and then Charlie -Peter's partner-' he explained at their confused expressions, 'was killed in the line of duty, that's when he went to Records. Everything was so much better, everything turned around, and Cassie and Peter were so…they were going to sell this place and buy a little plot of land outside the city, get away from the hustle and bustle of it all.' He shook his head despairingly. 'I can't believe that after all of that he had a heart attack.'</p>
      <p>Dragging weary paws down his face he refocused his attention. 'I'm sorry,' he apologized, as if only realizing he had vented his frustrations on them. 'Thank you for coming,' he said, shaking himself from his own grief-stricken thoughts. 'It means a lot to Cassie.'</p>
      <p>Nick murmured an appropriate farewell, expressing his condolences and hoping he wasn't talking over Judy if she was expressing any final sentiments before she took a step back.</p>
      <p>Taking his arm, she turned and led them towards the taxi that was still waiting for them, meter running.</p>
      <p>Getting into the cab, Nick felt exhaustion cling to his limbs making them heavy even as his mind buzzed uncomfortably, his chaotic thoughts turning over the events of the day.</p>
      <p>'Judy,' he began startling her from her thoughts.</p>
      <p>'Yeah?' she asked, turning her head to look at him.</p>
      <p>'About this morning…' his words trailed off, their heated exchange seeming so long ago, almost another lifetime ago, not knowing if this was the right moment to talk about what he had done, but feeling it was a conversation that needed to be had before it got lost in everything that was going on. 'I'm sorry. You're right, I never should have-'</p>
      <p>'Nick,' she grabbed his paw, flicking a quick glance to their audience before continuing, 'I forgive you,' she stated. 'I know it was important, your actions were wrong, but it seems so far away from everything that's going on right now and honestly, if you hadn't done what you did, I never would have gotten to know him, so thank you.' She gave his paw a quick squeeze and withdrew her paw, settling back against the seat.</p>
      <p>Accepting her forgiveness, relief flowing through him, he allowed himself this moment of happiness before his thoughts became stricken and grim.</p>
      <p>Sitting in silence the rest of the way home, he was grateful when he was able to step from the cab, waiting patiently while Judy paid the fare, giving the fox a tip that was by far too generous.</p>
      <p>'He probably rode up the meter while we were in the house,' he murmured and Judy gave a shrug of her shoulders.</p>
      <p>'I have a soft spot for foxes,' she replied, Nick's heart flipping over in his chest as they made their way around back where the elevator was located.</p>
      <p>Rounding the corner, a familiar figure stood pacing back and forth in agitation.</p>
      <p>Nick frowned as Freddy noticed their approach and bounded over to them.</p>
      <p>'Hey!' the young buck said as he threw his arms around Judy's shoulders, giving her a fierce hug. If Freddy spoke his worlds were lost to Nick, but by the expression on the buck's face, Nick gathered that he had heard about Officer Growle.</p>
      <p>When the buck released Judy, it was Nick's turn to be given a gentle hug, leaving Nick feeling awkward as he gave the young male a few comforting pats on the shoulder.</p>
      <p>Freddy stepped back and Judy gave Nick a look that he was unable to decipher.</p>
      <p>'Come inside,' Judy offered, waving the buck to the elevator she unlocked, allowing them entry into their apartment.</p>
      <p>Nick gave Judy a raised eye-ridge of inquiry, but she only shook her head in response.</p>
      <p>Entering the apartment, Freddy made his way into the kitchen, Judy motioning for Freddy to take a seat at the table, the young buck declining with a shake of his head. 'I know this is very bad timing, and I am so sorry to hear about Officer Growle, he was a good boar, but-'</p>
      <p>'We think he was murdered,' Judy interrupted, silencing the buck.</p>
      <p>Freddy's eyes grew large and his gaze bounced between Nick and Judy, seeking an explanation. 'What?'</p>
      <p>Judy shook her head, unwilling to answer the question. 'We learned today that our friend Finnick was kitnapped,' she replied instead. 'I dragged him into Happytown with me, I was partnered up with Officer Growle, and now one is dead, the other is missing and I can't take any more risks with anyone's lives,' she said, her eyes overly bright with anger and unshed tears. 'You need to stay as far away from us as you can because I refuse to have anyone else's blood on my paws.'</p>
      <p>'Judy, it isn't-' Freddy began.</p>
      <p>'But it is!' Judy snapped. 'I'm the common link, and I can't…' her voice trailed off as she broke, tears streaming down her cheeks.</p>
      <p>Nick rushed to Judy's side, clutching her close as she sobbed into his shirt. He looked hopelessly at Freddy who shifted uncomfortably back and forth, his expression of helplessness etched into his features.</p>
      <p>'It's not your fault,' Nick murmured. 'It's the fault of whoever did this.'</p>
      <p>'He's right,' Freddy agreed.</p>
      <p>'And the only way to make this right, is to find out who is behind all of this and bring them to justice,' Nick growled.</p>
      <p>'I'm not leaving, or running away, or pretending like everything is fine when it isn't,' Freddy argued. 'I'm not going to lie, I'm terrified, but whatever's going on…there are mammals out there, and we don't know what's happened to them -something probably horrible- and whoever is doing this isn't going to stop. You need to stop them, and the leads aren't exactly pouring in. You need all the help you can get,' he finished, balling his paws into fists, eyes glinting with determination, daring either one of them to deny what he had said or refusing his help.</p>
      <p>Judy stepped out of Nick's arms and quickly brushed away her tears. He assumed she had begun trying to reason with Freddy, her lips hidden from his view as Freddy shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest, a steely look entering his grey eyes.</p>
      <p>'He's not wrong,' Nick offered, causing Judy to turn her head to look at him, her expression angry and frustrated. 'We have no resources and only a few mammals we can trust at the ZPD,' he pointed out. 'He's a grown buck, he knows the risks, if he still wants to help, I say we let him.'</p>
      <p>Glancing between them, Judy's shoulders sagged in defeat. 'Fine,' she said, throwing up her paws, 'but if you end up dead, don't complain to me about it.'</p>
      <p>Freddy opened his mouth to comment, thought better of it, and agreed with a quick nod of his head. He then motioned both of them over to the map that was still taped to the wall, the small amount of leads and evidence they had looking paltry against the large sprawl of the Zootopia map.</p>
      <p>'You said your friend was kitnapped and your partner murdered?' Freddy asked with a frown.</p>
      <p>Judy nodded, explaining what they had found, placing a sticky note with the word 'GUILTY' written on it while Nick placed an X on the spot where Finnick was kitnapped, adding 'weasel fur' and 'two assailants?' on a sticky note.</p>
      <p>They were silent for a moment before Freddy reached out and tapped Happytown on the map. 'Nothing I can say right now will help out with your friend or Officer Growle,' Freddy began, 'and like I said, it's terrible timing and really, it isn't much, but the last time I was here it was bothering me why they tore down the warehouse. There was no reason to unless there was something still there.'</p>
      <p>'<em>If</em> they did tear down the warehouse,' Nick pointed out. 'We have no actual proof that they did.'</p>
      <p>'Actually, we do,' Freddy countered. Digging a piece of folded paper from his pocket, he smoothed it out before handing it to Nick. 'I photocopied it.'</p>
      <p>Nick inspected the paper, noting it was a permit for demolition of the warehouse scheduled for two days ago, citing various code violations and indicating that it had been condemned.</p>
      <p>'This was submitted and signed by city management months ago,' Nick pointed out, giving Judy the paper to inspect.</p>
      <p>Freddy nodded. 'I wanted to know if there was any paperwork on the warehouse and because I spend a lot of time downtown searching through old city planning records and they know me, it wasn't hard to sneak across the hall to The Zootopia Building Records and Permits Office to find it,' Freddy said with a shrug.</p>
      <p>Nick had to admit, the buck's ingenuity and foresight was impressive.</p>
      <p>'Seems a little convenient that the permit exists, doesn't it?' Freddy continued. 'I found three more just like it. This is the newest one, but the dates on the others go back years.'</p>
      <p>'It's brilliant,' Nick whispered as his eyes widened in realization. 'Rig the building with explosives, get a permit condemning the property and use the warehouse until it becomes too risky to operate or if it is somehow discovered and the warehouse conveniently disappears and any evidence goes with it. Keep renewing the permits because no one would think there would be multiple permits for the same building or write it off as a clerical error, and it would give the owners deniability and a record indicating that the building had been scheduled for demolition.'</p>
      <p>'Only this time, two cops follow a suspect into the warehouse,' Freddy agreed. 'The bombs were detonated with the officers inside and there was no way the owners of that building can claim that it was supposed to be demo'd when a surviving officer saw an ocelot trigger the explosives. They have no choice but to let the police search the crime scene until it's released, give it a few weeks to allow any suspicion or interest to die down and get rid of the building,' Freddy agreed, followed along Nick's line of thinking.</p>
      <p>'But, Finnick and I scoured that warehouse,' Judy pointed out. 'Why risk bringing attention to the building? What we found was more circumstantial than anything and it didn't give us any leads or clues as to what was going on, or who was responsible. We can only speculate that they were transporting mammals in cages packed in crates for reasons that are unknown but probably horrific. There was nothing else.'</p>
      <p>'I know,' Freddy agreed tapping the map again. 'But I asked some of the other bike messengers if they noticed any large transport vehicles coming in or out of Happytown, and they all said they hadn't.'</p>
      <p>'They could have been moved at night,' Judy posited.</p>
      <p>'I thought of that,' Freddy agreed, 'and it's a possibility, but I think the movement of those cages was much more covert and the destruction of the warehouse had more to do with what was under it than in it.'</p>
      <p>Judy's eyes widened, finding a connection. 'Tunnels,' she said slowly, Freddy giving a humourless grin, pleased with Judy's quick deduction.</p>
      <p>'The old burrowing holes?' Nick asked as he stepped closer to the map.</p>
      <p>'Yes,' Freddy replied, Judy looking at Nick in shock.</p>
      <p>'You knew there were tunnels under Happytown?' Judy asked.</p>
      <p>'Not tunnels so much as hidey holes littered here and there,' Nick replied. 'Finnick and I practically lived in a few of them. Most of them are under buildings, but a lot are sealed up with bricks and cement.'</p>
      <p>Freddy nodded in agreement. 'If you had the resources and the labour to do it, making the chambers into interconnecting tunnels would be easy, especially if they connected with the old abandoned subway lines.'</p>
      <p>Judy quickly wrote 'Tunnels' on a sticky note and put it next to the other sticky notes around Happytown.</p>
      <p>'It's as good a theory as any,' Nick agreed, a frown pulling down the corners of his mouth. 'We think we know the <em>how</em>,' he muttered, 'but not the <em>why</em> or the destination.' He grimaced in frustration. 'Somewhere outside of Happytown,' he said, thinking out loud. 'They would have no reason to use a tunnel system if they were moving the crates from one place in to another in Happytown.'</p>
      <p>'Are there any maps of the underground tunnel system?' Judy asked Freddy.</p>
      <p>Freddy shook his head. 'No, they would never have been officially mapped, and even if they were, mammals have been blocking and filling in tunnels for as long as Zootopia has existed. I could dig through the drawings from the City Planning Department to see if I can find any abandoned subway lines, but we are talking decades of drawings to go through, so whatever I find may be incomplete, but I suppose it's a place to start.'</p>
      <p>Judy gave a reluctant nod, accepting Freddy's offer.</p>
      <p>'Also,' he continued, 'it's been driving me insane not being able to place that tag, but I think I have narrowed down where I could have seen it,' he said and Nick found his posture straightening in anticipation.</p>
      <p>If they could find where the tag had come from, it was possible they would be able to discover who was responsible for everything and find Finnick.</p>
      <p>'Don't get too excited,' Freddy cautioned. 'I know the last time we discussed it I remembered seeing the tag while on one of my routes or a route I was filling in for. Thinking about it, I realized that the only logical place where I would have seen a dry-cleaning tag would be at an office building or a hotel,' he explained. 'It's possible I saw it at an office building, after all, there are enough assistants and interns that pick up their boss' dry-cleaning, but I remember it being on a rack, not being carried by an individual.'</p>
      <p>'So, a hotel,' Judy stated.</p>
      <p>'How many hotels are on your route?' Nick asked, a sinking feeling filling his gut as Freddy's shoulder's slumped slightly.</p>
      <p>'With my route plus the routes I filled in for there are over one-hundred.'</p>
      <p>Nick's heart dropped at the impossibility of it. Finnick didn't have that kind of time. There were too many hotels to check for the slim possibility that a rack of dry-cleaning was delivered with the tag they needed.</p>
      <p>'But,' Freddy continued, 'only thirty offer a dry-cleaning service and of those thirty, only eleven aren't on my usual route. I've already checked out all of the other hotels on my routes, and although it's possible that they've changed their mode of operations or halted them, I have a feeling that the tag was used at a hotel that I don't normally deliver to.'</p>
      <p>'Freddy!' Judy protested.</p>
      <p>'I was careful,' Freddy soothed by putting up his paws in surrender. 'It's literally my job to enter the hotels, chat with the staff, and deliver their mail. I've asked Wally if he could trade routes with me tomorrow, which means I'll be able to hit six of the eleven on my list. If those don't pan out, then I'll ask Jamie to switch my route for his and I can get the final five the next day. If I don't find anything then I guess it means we've hit a dead end or my memory and my theory are garbage.'</p>
      <p>Nick ignored Judy's imploring gaze, wanting him to oppose Freddy's dangerous plan, but Nick found no objection with it. The buck was right, it <em>was</em> his job to go into the businesses on his route; it couldn't be more of a perfect cover for surveillance. 'It's a good idea,' he told the younger male. 'Let us know if you find anything.'</p>
      <p>Judy threw up her paws in frustration, shaking her head in irritation, mumbling something under her breath that he was unable to make out.</p>
      <p>'I will,' Freddy agreed, turning and studying the map again, his finger drifting along his regular route, as if making sure he hadn't missed anything before it stopped on Precinct One. A moment later, he traced a line to Finnick's last known location only two blocks away. 'You don't think these two events could be connected, do you?' he asked.</p>
      <p>'Like someone murdered Officer Growle and then moseyed on over to Finnick's van and kitnapped him?' Nick asked.</p>
      <p>Freddy frowned. 'That does sound ridiculous,' he agreed. 'Sorry,' he apologized. 'Anyway, I just wanted to give my condolences regarding Officer Growle and catch you up on what I think I figured out. But you guys look exhausted and I know you're worried about your friend and I really hope you can find him.' He stepped away from the map. 'I should probably go so I don't-'</p>
      <p>'You can stay,' Judy said before Nick could offer the same, a reaction that surprised him considering the last time the buck had visited their apartment he had wanted to turf him out the moment he had laid eyes on him. But things had changed and Nick no longer saw Freddy as a threat. Sure, the buck obviously had feelings for Judy, but the doe had chosen Nick, not the grey buck, and that had relieved Nick of the animosity he had held for him.</p>
      <p>That, and the bunny had proved himself to be useful. Nick would take any help he could get with finding Finnick.</p>
      <p>Finnick…who had already been missing for two days…</p>
      <p>His heart twisted and he tried and failed to shut away the panic and fear that settled heavily in his stomach.</p>
      <p>Whoever had taken the fennec fox had not killed him outright, Nick reasoned with himself. Why? He wasn't sure, but he suspected it was because they wanted him alive, most likely to get information out of him. And when Finnick gave them what they needed…</p>
      <p>'Stay,' Nick insisted, knowing that like Judy, his frantic mind was not as sharp as it normally was.</p>
      <p>'Are you sure?' Freddy asked. 'I don't want to intrude.'</p>
      <p>'I don't want to drag you into this,' Judy answered. 'I don't want anything to happen to you, but…I suppose you're already in it and you're right, I'm exhausted and buzzing with energy all at the same time. My mind is too full and I feel in my gut that there is an answer or a pattern we aren't seeing, so another pair of eyes would be really appreciated.' Judy said, causing the buck to perk up substantially.</p>
      <p>Stepping forward and studying the map, Judy traced the same path that Freddy had. 'Officer Growle's death could have been a heart attack,' she said, turning so that Nick could read her lips.</p>
      <p>'It's possible,' Nick acknowledged, 'but your gut says otherwise.'</p>
      <p>'It does,' she agreed. 'But…what if Freddy's right?' she asked.</p>
      <p>'How?' he asked in confusion. 'Finnick was snatched at least two days ago.'</p>
      <p>'But what if he wasn't?' she asked, intense concentration etched into her face as she shifted from foot to foot with apparent excess energy.</p>
      <p>'This feels like one of those <em>what if</em> games young ones usually play,' Freddy pointed out as he watched Judy gather her thoughts and put them in some semblance of order before she spoke again.</p>
      <p>'Okay,' she said holding out her paws, a marker in her right twisting in the air like a conductor's baton. 'I don't think we are looking at this the right way.'</p>
      <p>'Which way is the right way? Upside down?' Nick sassed unhelpfully.</p>
      <p>Judy ignored him. 'Finnick's van was only two blocks away from Precinct One, and maybe it was a coincidence or Finnick was in the wrong place at the wrong time, but regardless, both were <em>targeted</em>.'</p>
      <p>Nick felt his eyes widen as he followed Judy's train of thought. 'You think someone was surveilling the precinct, keeping an eye on you.'</p>
      <p>'And after Happytown, looking for Finnick,' she pointed out. 'We have only been thinking of our search for the ocelot and the one responsible for the operation we interrupted, and although we had a vague sort of acknowledgement of the danger we could be in by continuing the investigation in secret, I don't think we really believed that they were actively working to stop us.'</p>
      <p>'So, Officer Growle and Finnick were a warning?' Freddy asked. 'And how did they even know you were still working on the case? You aren't officially assigned to it, and why you and not the officers officially on the case?'</p>
      <p>'Because Officer Hopps is the best officer in the ZPD,' Nick replied with pride as he gave Judy a look that let her know his words were the absolute truth.</p>
      <p>Judy glanced away in embarrassment before shifting her gaze back.</p>
      <p>Voicing a more serious concern, Nick offered, 'It's possible that there is someone in the ZPD feeding information to the mammal or mammals responsible for whatever is going on in Happytown.'</p>
      <p>'I wasn't subtle about looking at the case file for the bombing,' Judy said, her expression grim.</p>
      <p>'But why attack Officer Growle?' Freddy asked. 'Everyone said he died of a heart attack, but you claim he was poisoned with something, so if they were trying to leave a message, it wasn't a very good one.'</p>
      <p>'He's right,' Nick agreed.</p>
      <p>'Officer Growle also wrote GUILTY into the floor, maybe he was the one who was a dirty cop,' Judy voiced, her gaze downcast.</p>
      <p>Nick didn't like the thought of any of their own at Precinct One guilty of being on the take to a criminal, but the thought of the old bear being dirty sent his stomach twisting darkly. 'Maybe,' he acknowledged, 'but if you have someone on the inside reporting information, seems counterproductive to kill them, especially without making his death mean something.'</p>
      <p>'Maybe Officer Growle was in the wrong place at the wrong time,' Freddy offered causing their attention to turn to him. He gave a thoughtful pause before continuing. 'If they were surveilling the precinct, and we have to assume they have been for a while if they knew Judy was a threat, then from what you told me, Judy should have been in Records with Officer Growle when he was killed. Maybe they had planned on...I don't know, making it look like an accident.'</p>
      <p>'But then why kill Officer Growle if I was the target?' Judy wondered.</p>
      <p>Freddy gave a shrug. 'Maybe the perpetrator couldn't get out of Records without Officer Growle seeing him.'</p>
      <p>'It's a good theory,' Nick began, 'and it's all we've got so far, but it still doesn't explain the GUILTY message Officer Growle left.'</p>
      <p>'Maybe the two aren't connected,' Judy replied. 'or we aren't seeing how they do connect. What we do know is that Officer Growle is dead and Finnick was kitnapped because I dragged him into Happytown.' She gripped her sharpie tightly. 'I didn't listen to Finnick when he told me there were probably mammals watching the warehouse, and he's paying the price for my arrogance.'</p>
      <p>They were silent, staring at the map, unable to offer any words to lessen Judy's feelings of guilt.</p>
      <p>'You think our assassin killed Officer Growle, walked out of the precinct, saw Finnick, and snatched him?' Nick asked, trying to get her mind focused on anything other than her own perceived culpability.</p>
      <p>'I'm not sure,' Judy replied. 'We know that Finnick was taken by two mammals, a weasel and a larger predator, but we don't know if his abduction happened before or after Officer Growle's murder or if the two events were even planned together, but what if the murderer also helped Finnick's kitnapper?'</p>
      <p>'It's a stretch, but possible,' Nick agreed.</p>
      <p>'If we were being watched at the warehouse, I was probably recognized, but it may have taken a few days to track Finnick down.'</p>
      <p>'Finnick's pretty well-known in criminal circles,' Nick added. 'Not as well-known as me, but he's up there. And there aren't exactly a ton of fennec foxes running around outside of Happytown. A question here, an inquiry there, and it wouldn't take a mammal long to find him.'</p>
      <p>'Or his van,' Judy added.</p>
      <p>Nick nodded his acceptance of her words, knowing the piece-of-shit van stuck out like a sore thumb.</p>
      <p>Frowning in concentration, Nick's gaze focusing on the map of Zootopia, his eyes shifting from Precinct One to where he had found Finnick's van. 'One thing bothers me though,' he mused. 'No, two things,' he corrected. 'How did the assassin get in and out of the precinct and why didn't Finnick use his bat?'</p>
      <p>'Mammals are constantly going in and out of the precinct,' Freddy offered into the silence that followed. 'I should know, I'm one of them. I don't think it would be hard to walk in and walk out, especially if they knew where they were going and looked like they were supposed to be there.'</p>
      <p>Judy stilled, her ears falling at whatever thought struck her. 'They were dressed as a cop,' she voiced her tumultuous thought aloud, her expression devastated. 'You could walk through the precinct without causing anyone to look at you twice,' Judy observed.</p>
      <p>'Or they <em>are</em> a cop,' Nick pointed out darkly. 'But if they were dressed as a cop, or were a cop, it would explain why Finnick would open the back door without threatening them.'</p>
      <p>They stewed in silence for a few moments.</p>
      <p>'Judy is set up to die in an "accident,"' Freddy began, using air quotes. 'Officer Growle is collateral damage, and Finnick is kitnapped…. Why not just kill Finnick?'</p>
      <p>'Too much attention?' Judy offered. 'A lot of mammals know he and Nick are friends.'</p>
      <p>'Information,' Nick stated firmly, echoing his earlier thoughts.</p>
      <p>A grim silence followed this pronouncement before Judy spoke, her head nodding in agreement at his assumption.</p>
      <p>'If I was to be killed in a staged accident of some sort,' Judy began, 'then there wouldn't be time to have a conversation, but Finnick, he's small, easily taken and transported, the perfect mammal for them to get information about how much the ZPD knows and find out who else knows about our afterhours activities.'</p>
      <p>'Finnick doesn't know much,' Nick pointed out.</p>
      <p>'He knows enough,' Judy countered, 'but he doesn't know everything, and I don't know if they will think he's holding back, which will make them keep him alive for longer, or if they'll just…' her words trailed off.</p>
      <p>Judy's eyes suddenly widened and she clutched at Freddy in horror. 'The Timber wolf!' Releasing Freddy's shirt, Judy snatched the post-it notes from the side and wrote 'Timber wolf' on it, adding it to their wall. 'On my way into the precinct this morning, I bumped into a grey wolf wearing a Precinct Five uniform, but I didn't think anything of it, I was too busy freaking out because I was late!'</p>
      <p>Nick strode to the wall, grabbing the sharpie from Judy's shaking paw and placed an 'X' on the spot where Precinct Five was located.</p>
      <p>'It could be a coincidence,' Freddy said as he touched Nick's shoulder to make sure he was able to read his lips.</p>
      <p>'I don't believe in coincidences,' Nick replied as his gaze strayed back to the map, the 'X' sitting at the edge of Sahara Square, which sat along the route of unchecked hotels that Freddy had marked on the map.</p>
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        <strong>Sooo much going on!</strong>
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<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Chapter 18</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is one of those chapters where there is a lot of talking, but it is important, soooo...enjoy!! XD<br/>As always, thank you to everyone who is reading and who has left kuddos and commented, it all means so much to me!!</p>
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      <p><strong>Judy</strong> vibrated, the mixture of dread, guilt, anxiety, and terror, creating a poisonous tonic that settled in her stomach and leached into her veins.</p>
      <p>After Nick's pronouncement that he didn't believe it was a coincidence that the Timber wolf she had collided with in Precinct One this morning had been wearing a Precinct Five uniform -whose officers worked Sahara Square which was where Freddy believed he had seen the tag- pandemonium had erupted between the three occupants of the room.</p>
      <p>"We have a plan!" Judy shouted, trying to gain the attention of the two males, knowing the volume of her voice would not be heard by Nick, but at least she could get Freddy to stop talking and listen and hopefully Nick would notice and follow suit.</p>
      <p>Thankfully, getting Freddy's undivided attention pulled Nick from his frantic monologue and she was able to explain. "Tomorrow, Freddy does Wally's route and checks the six hotels, and-"</p>
      <p>"And then what!?" Nick snapped, interrupting her.</p>
      <p>Judy and Freddy looked at him with wide-eyed shock.</p>
      <p>"I'm sorry," he apologized, shoulders hunching with frustration, "it's a good plan, it…<em>would</em> be a good plan, but Freddy's route doesn't start until tomorrow, sixteen hours from now, and what if the hotel is on Jamie's route? That's another twenty-four hours that we'll have to wait. Finnick's tough as nails, but eventually they'll break him and then he won't be any use to them and they'll kill him!" Nick stated grimly. "And even if we do find out where the tag came from, what then? A black tag that matches the one the ocelot dropped won't be enough evidence to bring the ZPD in to make any arrests; it's all circumstantial!" he argued. "Which means we have no way of making whoever is running the operation tell us where Finnick is because I'd bet money they don't have Finnick tied up in a hotel room," Nick growled as he ran his fingers through the fur at the top of his head, pulling it into messy spikes, his body slumped with angry hopelessness.</p>
      <p>Judy shared a look with Freddy, not knowing how to comfort the red fox because he was right; they had no plan for what to do after they found the tag or how to find Finnick.</p>
      <p>Falling into silence, Judy felt as disheartened as Nick looked.</p>
      <p>Freddy backed up a few paces and sat down on the floor, his ears hanging down, dejection and concentration etched into his features, staring at the map as if it would suddenly provide an answer.</p>
      <p>"Nick's right," Freddy offered slowly into the tense silence of the room. "The plan is good for finding out where the tag came from, but that doesn't help us find Finnick. We had time before-"</p>
      <p>"And we've run out of it," Nick interrupted angrily and Judy found herself having to agree with Nick.</p>
      <p>"The answer is here; I know it is!" Judy said, trying to keep herself from despairing.</p>
      <p>"Then we go over it again," Nick growled. "We aren't giving up on Finnick."</p>
      <p>Judy tried not to tear her fur out in frustration. "We're not going to give up," she reassured Nick, placing a comforting paw on his arm.</p>
      <p>"Wait!" Freddy shouted, leaping up off the floor, ears standing straight up, body shaking with excitement. "Judy was right!" he exclaimed. "We need to look at this a different way."</p>
      <p>"What way!?" Nick bit out in anger.</p>
      <p>"You," Freddy said, leaping over to the wall and pointing at the map. "Nick, you need to stop looking at this like a cop and start looking at this like a criminal."</p>
      <p>"I have been!" Nick argued. "I know what goes on in Happytown, I know how Finnick thinks, how the bad guys operate, I-" Nick paused, his eyes widening, "I've been thinking like a cop," he admitted in disbelief.</p>
      <p>"Okay," Judy said, hope blossoming in her as Nick stared at the map with renewed interest. "We started at Howlett's dry cleaning," Judy began, pointing to the spot on the map.</p>
      <p>"Why?" Freddy asked.</p>
      <p>"We were there because we thought they were laundering money," Judy answered in irritation, knowing that she had already answered this question from Freddy when they had first begun trying to solve this case.</p>
      <p>"No," Freddy said shaking his head, "I mean why are the…" he paused, before he rolled his eyes, "…the bad guys…I'm sorry I can't think of what to call this whole criminal organization," he said as Nick gave him a derisive look. "Why are the bad guys using Howlett's if they aren't using it as a place to launder the money?"</p>
      <p>"To move whatever is in the dry cleaning bags," Judy asserted.</p>
      <p>"No," Nick said slowly. "I mean, yes, probably," he clarified, "but…" he pointed at Howlett's as he made his way to the map, his finger tracing a line across to Sahara Square. "If I were a huge criminal organization that has been trafficking mammals out of Happytown for some horrible reason by using a hidden tunnel system, what are they doing with a dry cleaning business?"</p>
      <p>"That's assuming they aren't running another operation at the same time," Freddy added.</p>
      <p>"No, it's connected," Judy affirmed. "The ocelot led us to the cages. If it was part of say…a drug operation, then he would have headed for another familiar location instead of the warehouse." Judy stared at the map. "But before the ocelot saw me, he was headed East, towards Sahara Square."</p>
      <p>"I wonder if he had a car parked somewhere out of sight?" Nick mused thoughtfully. "I guess it was smart of him to change direction and head away from his vehicle, since it could have given us a name if we had been able to track the license plate if we hadn't been able to catch him. But it was really stupid to lead us to the warehouse."</p>
      <p>"I think if it had been any other cop, we would have lost him," Judy said. "No other cop knows Happytown."</p>
      <p>"No other cop would have gone <em>into</em> Happytown," Nick pointed out gruffly before scowling, his ears pinning themselves against his head for a moment. The bitter twist of his lips softened into thoughtful annoyance as he tried to puzzle out the reason for the involvement of the dry cleaners.</p>
      <p>"The dry cleaners is throwing me off," Nick said with a shake of his head and moving his finger to the warehouse in Happytown. "The point of any criminal business venture is to make money," Nick said tapping the map. "That means supplying products or services that are either less than acceptable or completely illegal. Supply and demand," he explained. "This warehouse was used for exactly the purpose it was intended: to store the product before it's moved to its distribution point." Nick slid his finger to Sahara Square.</p>
      <p>Judy thought about objecting to Nick referring to the trafficked mammals as 'product', but didn't want him to lose his train of thought, remaining silent as they waited for Nick to continue.</p>
      <p>"The only reason we know that Sahara Square is the destination is because of the tag, which is the only piece of evidence we have connecting the two points," Nick said, sounding like a cop again. "There's a lot of shady things that go on in Sahara Square, but in all my years plying my trades on the street, I've never heard even a whisper of any trafficking going on there."</p>
      <p>"Maybe Sahara Square is more of a way station before they take the mammals out of Zootopia," Freddy suggested.</p>
      <p>"I don't think so," Nick said, his gaze going back to Howlett's Dry Cleaning.</p>
      <p>"Would that mean Finnick is wherever they are taking the trafficked mammals?" Freddy asked.</p>
      <p>Judy stared at Freddy in shock as Nick's eyes went wide.</p>
      <p>"I…" Judy trailed off, her mind grinding to a halt as it processed the new possibility that Finnick was still in Sahara Square somewhere, hidden away with the other trafficked mammals rather than being a needle in the proverbial haystack that was Zootopia.</p>
      <p>Nick began pacing back and forth in agitation, renewed desperation enlivening his movements as he dragged his paw through his fur and thrashed his tail. "If they have holding cages somewhere, it would make sense to keep Finnick close rather than sending him away," he agreed before asking, "Judy, do you remember anyone picking up their dry cleaning when we were staked outside Howlett's?"</p>
      <p>"No," she replied, Nick ceasing his frantic movements. "The only customer was a weasel wearing an expensive suit, and he was dropping off, not picking up."</p>
      <p>"So, what was a well-dressed weasel doing dropping off his suit at a tiny dry-cleaning shop in a shitty part of town when he could have dropped his suit off anywhere else?" Nick asked, his features set into a harsh line.</p>
      <p>"And what was a sketchy ocelot with ties to Happytown doing picking up a stack of clothing from Howlett's after closing?" Judy countered.</p>
      <p>"You said that the books at Howlett's were clean, right? No money laundering?" Freddy asked, dragging both her and Nick from their line of thoughts.</p>
      <p>"That's right," Judy replied, annoyed at the interruption.</p>
      <p>"Do you think the tags could be a code of some sort then?" Freddy wondered causing her and Nick to stare at him in shock.</p>
      <p>Nick's ears perked up, as if everything suddenly slid into place, a smile on his face. "Yes!" he exclaimed. "That's what… That's got to be it! It's one thing to subtly advertise your willingness to sell illicit drugs or weapons, it's another thing to advertise the sale of trafficked mammals."</p>
      <p>"And the clientele is not run-of-the-mill either, it looks as if they cater to the wealthy," Judy observed.</p>
      <p>"Bring in your dry cleaning, select your vice from the menu, pay the dry cleaning fee and continue on your way. Your order is then processed and given to those offering the service. No paper trail or evidence to tie anyone to anything illegal," Nick offered with a twist of his lips. "If it wasn't so vile, I'd be impressed."</p>
      <p>The was a brief silence where the occupants were all in agreement of Nick's comment, Judy breaking it when she pointed out that Sahara Square was one of the wealthiest districts in Zootopia, which didn't help them narrow down a specific location or mammal.</p>
      <p>"Do we have any idea who runs Sahara Square?" Judy asked slowly. "If Mr. Big runs Tundra Town, it would make sense that there would be someone running the other districts' criminal underworlds as well."</p>
      <p>Nick shook his head. "The Darkmane pride runs Savanah Central, but they deal mostly in guns, and the Rainforest District is run by Boris Rundle."</p>
      <p>"The shipping magnate?" Judy asked with a gasp, surprised that one of the wealthiest elites of Zootopia was a criminal.</p>
      <p>Nick nodded. "Don't let the posh manners, genteel pedigree, or expensive suits fool you. He runs the docks. Nothing gets in or out of Zootopia without going through him, though there are those who try and well…let's' just say that the whole concrete shoes thing isn't just fiction." Nick warned. "But Sahara Square," Nick shook his head. "The Blacktail's and the Greywards run most, if not all, of the illegal goings on in Sahara Square. Those two mob families have an uneasy truce and take care of any gangs that try to slide into their territories. They run drugs, prostitution, protection rackets, and money laundering."</p>
      <p>"Why are there two mob families in Sahara Square but not anywhere else?" Freddy asked.</p>
      <p>"Bigger underbelly," Nick answered. "You want to go a little wild, lose your inhabitations and dive into some good old debauchery, Sahara Square is the place to go."</p>
      <p>"So why don't we think one or both of these two mob families are our culprits?" Judy asked.</p>
      <p>"Because both of those families are old school, stick to their lanes, and have no connection to Happytown. It would be beneath them to deal with the low-level thugs and violent street gangs."</p>
      <p>"Something could have changed," Judy insisted.</p>
      <p>"The Blacktails are a family of Hyenas, nasty bunch and don't work well with animals from the felidae or mustelidae families, so they would never work with an ocelot or a weasel. They might work with a wolf, but they tend to stay within their own family. And the Greywards are a herd of Adax who love to hire bigger mammals, lions, camels, buffalos, for muscle, but they deal exclusively in drugs and prostitution."</p>
      <p>"So, you're saying that someone is sneaking around behind the backs of these two mob families and running a mammal trafficking ring without their knowledge?" Judy asked incredulously. "Are they stupid, lucky, or do they have a deal with the Blacktails and Greywards?"</p>
      <p>"Don't know," Nick answered. "Maybe there is a third player, but if there is, it's the best kept secret in Sahara Square," he admitted.</p>
      <p>Judy grimaced at the dead end her questions had led to, a feeling of frustration and heavy worry filling her.</p>
      <p>Nick stared hard at the map, a frown on his face. Freddy stood next to the red fox tracing a line from where Finnick was kitnapped to Sahara Square to the precinct.</p>
      <p>"How do you suppose Officer Growle fits into all of this?" Freddy asked. "Do you really think he was collateral damage?" Freddy wondered.</p>
      <p>"I would think so, except for the word scratched into the linoleum. It's too suspicious," Judy replied. "But… I can't help believing that he wouldn't be involved in something like this."</p>
      <p>"I didn't know Officer Growle too well," Freddy began, "but he didn't strike me as the type to profit from someone else's pain," Freddy said, shifting from foot to foot.</p>
      <p>"And if Officer Growle was profiting or getting a nice bit of cash on the side for doing something illegal, he definitely wasn't spending it, at least, not from what we saw of his house," Nick agreed.</p>
      <p>Freddy made a noise, neither of agreement or disagreement. "But if I didn't know him, and if I were a bad guy who ran a criminal organization that was abducting mammals from vulnerable populations, then I'd say that it would be a pretty good to have a cop working in Records." Judy stared at Freddy. "What?" he asked uncomfortably. "I'm just saying..."</p>
      <p>"Which would be true," Judy agreed thoughtfully, "but Officer Growle worked at Precinct One. There are closer precincts to file missing mammal reports since Happytown doesn't have a precinct. Precinct Three is the closest."</p>
      <p>Freddy shrugged. "Every little bit counts."</p>
      <p>"Officer Growle didn't seem interested in the missing mammal cold cases that I was going through, but… I wouldn't say he was less interested in them than any other cop that had a report of a missing mammal from Happytown," Judy said with a sigh of frustration. "And it didn't seem like he was trying to hide anything either."</p>
      <p>Deep down, she felt that Officer Growle was a good cop and she hated thinking that he was a part of the mammal trafficking ring. Glancing over at Nick, Judy noticed that he had been unusually silent during her exchange with Freddy.</p>
      <p>"Didn't Officer Growle's brother-in law Adrian, say that Officer Growle used to work in Vice?" Nick questioned.</p>
      <p>"Yes, he did," she answered, "before he transferred to Records."</p>
      <p>"Vice works heavily in Sahara Square and Savanah Central," Nick said as Judy pulled out her phone and quickly dialed the number Chief Bogo had given her.</p>
      <p>"Chief," Judy greeted as she heard the deep baritone of the Cape Buffalo's voice.</p>
      <p>"I haven't got the autopsy results yet, if that's why you're calling," Chief Bogo said, his voice strained and tired.</p>
      <p>"No," Judy said disappointed because she <em>was</em> hoping, but that was not why she had called the Chief. "We were wondering when Officer Growle transferred into Records?"</p>
      <p>Chief Bogo blew out a breath. "He's been down there since I've been Chief, and that was ten years ago," he replied, the sound of papers being moved and the clack of hooves typing on a keyboard filtering over the phone. "Says here Officer Growle transferred to Records from Vice fifteen years ago."</p>
      <p>"Thanks, Chief," Judy said.</p>
      <p>"Judy," Chief Bogo stopped her from hanging up, "Do you have anything yet?" he asked softly.</p>
      <p>"Not yet, but I think we're getting close," she admitted.</p>
      <p>"Was… Have you found any evidence that Growle was…dirty?" he asked in a low tone.</p>
      <p>"No evidence yet, Chief," she said, which was true, just wild speculation and a connecting set of circumstances. "But…" she bit her lip. She didn't want to clear Officer Growle just yet and give Chief Bogo the impression that the bear was clean when it was still possible that he wasn't. "There may be a connection…" her voice trailed off as a thought struck her. "There wasn't anything suspicious about Officer Growle's partner's death, was there?"</p>
      <p>The Chief didn't reply immediately, only the sound of typing let her know that the Cape buffalo was still on the line looking into her request. "No, doesn't seem to be. Officer Anders was killed while serving a warrant for a known felon, a low-level drug dealer in the Rainforest District. Two officers were killed when the suspect opened fire, Officer Growle was injured."</p>
      <p>Judy nodded her head. "Thanks, Chief," she said and the Cape buffalo gave a grunt.</p>
      <p>"Hopps," he said in a strained voice. "Autopsy results just came in."</p>
      <p>She waited, barely breathing as she heard the clicking of a mouse, indicating that the report had been e-mailed.</p>
      <p>"Officer Growle died of a heart attack," Chief Bogo informed her and Judy found her heart sink in an oddly relieved way. It meant that if he died of natural causes, then his death was not murder and they had been making wild assumptions- "The cause being a massive overdose of adrenalin."</p>
      <p>Judy's world tilted on its axis.</p>
      <p>"Officer Growle was murdered," he confirmed, no inflection in his voice, just flat fact.</p>
      <p>Judy sat down on the floor, hard. She had suspected, she had known, deep down that Officer Growle had been murdered, but the confirmation of it made her knees give way beneath her. She could hear Nick and Freddy calling her name, asking her what was wrong, but their voices had faded into the background, picking up instead Chief Bogo's unsteady breathing.</p>
      <p>Swallowing roughly, she said, "Thank you for letting us know," hanging up the phone. Taking a moment, she took a shaking breath, informing Nick and Freddy what Chief Bogo had just informed her.</p>
      <p>The males took the news better than she had, Nick frowning and turning his attention back to the wall, Freddy placing a gentle hand on Judy's shoulder and giving it a squeeze before pulling her up off the ground.</p>
      <p>"Thank you," she said to Freddy before gently touching Nick's arm to gain his attention.</p>
      <p>Nick's eyes were overly bright and filled with sorrow, anger, and a hint of panic.</p>
      <p>"Chief Bogo said that Officer Growle transferred into records fifteen years ago after his partner was shot, and no, there was nothing suspicious about his partner's death," she said trying to focus Nick's attention on something other than the growing panic filling his gaze.</p>
      <p>"Fifteen years is a long time," Freddy observed. "How long do you think they've been trafficking mammals?"</p>
      <p>"I was out of Happytown by then," Nick said. "I was just pulling Finnick out, but if he knew what was going on, he would have told us, so I don't know how long this has been going on."</p>
      <p>"Losing his partner must have been really traumatic," Freddy murmured.</p>
      <p>Judy gave a nod. "Yeah, I couldn't even imagine," she replied softly.</p>
      <p>Nick reached out and dragged Judy into a fierce hug. They had nearly lost each other. They were silent a moment before Judy stepped back.</p>
      <p>"Nick," Judy whispered miserably.</p>
      <p>"I know," he said. "It doesn't mean Officer Growle was dirty; sometimes good cops do bad things for the right reasons, sometimes they think they can handle dipping a paw into the dark underbelly of Zootopia and end up going too deep to get out of it. We might never know," he offered.</p>
      <p>Nick's suddenly stiffened in his arms. "Vice," he said as he pulled away and rushed to the wall. "Vice looks into drugs, gambling, and prostitution," Nick said, his voice rising. "Why traffic mammals to Sahara Square? Why the fancy code? The high-end clientele?"</p>
      <p>Judy shrugged. "Prostitution?" she asked.</p>
      <p>Nick shook his head. "What's the one thing Vice investigates that the Blacktails and the Greywards don't have their paws in?" Nick asked.</p>
      <p>It took a moment before the answer came to her. "Gambling?"</p>
      <p>"Exactly!"</p>
      <p>"But gambling is legal in Sahara Square," Freddy pointed out.</p>
      <p>"It is, but not outside of the casinos," Nick informed him. "The casino owners have an agreement with the Blacktails and Greywards of non-interference. Basically, they have all agreed to not muscle in on each other's businesses."</p>
      <p>"Animal death matches," Judy breathed out numbly.</p>
      <p>"Yes!" Nick exclaimed. "Gamblers love gambling on pretty much anything. The animal ring fights that go on in Sahara Square are brutal, but they are technical, not life or death. This means some ambitious business mammal brought the death matches of Happytown to their rich customers in Sahara Square."</p>
      <p>"Volunteers would probably be pretty slim," Judy offered, "so they kitnap mammals from Happytown because no one cares about the mammals in Happytown and get a couple cops in Records to bury the disturbing number of missing mammals and profits from all of it," Judy hypothesized grimly.</p>
      <p>"Sounds about right," Nick agreed.</p>
      <p>"There are thirty-four casinos in Sahara Square," Freddy said, standing next to Nick and making sure the red fox was able to see his lips. "Twenty-one are also hotels. Of the eleven hotels we had it narrowed down to, five are also casinos. Wally's route has three of them, Jamie's route has two."</p>
      <p>"That narrows things down even more, but still…" Nick growled staring hard at the map before placing his finger on one of the hotel/casinos. "This one," Nick said after a moment.</p>
      <p>"The Palm Hotel?" Freddy asked.</p>
      <p>"It's the biggest, most expensive, and most exclusive of all of the hotel/casinos," Nick said with conviction, glancing at Judy.</p>
      <p>"Are you sure that's where it would be run out of?" she asked.</p>
      <p>"My gut says yes," Nick replied. "The Palm would be the perfect place for a bunch of bored rich mammals looking for something to get their twisted perversions satisfied while pandering to their upper-class superiority and the comforts they're use to," Nick said, voice dripping with disgust.</p>
      <p>"Do you think they have Finnick there?" Freddy asked.</p>
      <p>"I hope so," Nick answered. "It's our best bet."</p>
      <p>"So, same plan?" Freddy asked. "Now that I know which place to scope out, I can hit it first, see what I can see, and let you know."</p>
      <p>Nick bit his lip. "That part of the plan's fine, confirmation of our theory, but we're going to need a plan to get Finnick out and find evidence to prove that there really is a death match fighting ring going on at The Palm."</p>
      <p>"It's a hotel<em> and</em> casino," Judy began, her mind working furiously to find a way to accomplish both goals and get them out alive at the end of it. "That means tight security, tons of surveillance, and we're still on our own, no police backup and even if we had it, we'd never be able to get a warrant on Nick's gut feeling."</p>
      <p>"And you can't forget that the wealthiest most influential mammals of Zootopia are probably involved; that'll be a problem," Nick pointed out and Judy gave a grim nod of acceptance to Nick's observation.</p>
      <p>"They'll be on the lookout for you as well," Freddy pointed out.</p>
      <p>"True…" Nick agreed, his features pulled into thoughtful lines, "but how much do they pay attention to the staff?"</p>
      <p>Freddy's eyes brightened. "Okay, okay. Yeah…okay. Hold on," he said with enthusiasm, darting for his backpack and bringing out a notebook.</p>
      <p>Judy gave Nick a confused look and Nick shrugged in return.</p>
      <p>Freddy placed the notebook on the table, pulling a pen from the coils that bound the pages together.</p>
      <p>Opening the book, he flipped to a blank page and began a rough sketch of a series of squares, rectangles and a large half circle. "Here are the kitchens," he said as he pointed to the large rectangle. "This area is the lobby of the hotel and," he drew and arrow pointing off the page, "the casino is that way." He waved his paw as if this was unimportant. "The laundry is in the basement, and these are various utility rooms and freight elevators as well as staff lockers and break rooms."</p>
      <p>Freddy looked up and took in Judy's surprised expression. "What?" he asked. "I'm friendly," he explained. "I subbed the route a lot when I was just starting out. I made friends with the kitchen staff. A lot of them like hanging outside, it's cooler than in the kitchen when they're taking a break. I've been invited in and been given the tour a few times." He pursed his lips. "Thing is, it's been a while since I've been inside. I could probably get the plans for the hotel from the Building Records and Permits Office, but I think it would be pretty suspicious since I've already been lurking around City Hall a bit too much lately. I also don't think it will help much in the long run because it isn't like there will be a sign advertising: 'Death matches held here.'"</p>
      <p>"You didn't notice anything during the times you were in the kitchen area?" Judy asked as she studied the quick sketch.</p>
      <p>"Nope," he replied shaking his head. "But I know that not a lot of the kitchen staff stay for long. The chef and sous-chef were pretty constant, same with the line and prep cooks, but the servers, busboys, washers, they all see a high turnover rate. That would be your best way in. Not a server though. Maybe a washer or prep cook?"</p>
      <p>"If I had an illegal death match gambling ring in the basement of my hotel," Nick began thoughtfully, "it would be super suspicious to drag rich mammals through the kitchens, because unless your staff has been paid off to not say anything, it's a pretty good way of getting caught."</p>
      <p>"It's also the weakest point of security," Freddy pointed out. "Mammals constantly dropping off deliveries and employees changing shifts, for you guys, you could probably sneak in through there without anyone noticing."</p>
      <p>"True," Judy agreed. "But that means that the entrance to the death match ring is probably hidden somewhere in the casino area itself," Judy said in frustration.</p>
      <p>"Who owns the hotel?" Freddy asked. "Maybe there's a way to bring whoever it is in on something and get a warrant, like bunch of outstanding parking tickets."</p>
      <p>"Casino is owned by Carsten International," Judy said, looking up the information on her phone.</p>
      <p>"And who owns Carsten International?" Nick asked.</p>
      <p>Judy shook her head, indicating that there was no further information.</p>
      <p>"Not too surprising," Nick grumbled. "Whoever is running the place would have to be an idiot to put their name on anything. It's probably a shell company owned by another shell company which it a subsidiary of another shell company that resides in another part of the world where rich mammals hide all of their shady business dealings."</p>
      <p>Judy let out a huff of frustration. It was as if roadblock after roadblock were being thrown in front of them. "Impersonating the kitchen staff won't get us any closer to the casino area," she pointed out.</p>
      <p>"Dress up as the wait-staff? The ones that serve the drinks to the customers at the tables?" Freddy suggested. "Security usually pays more attention to the customers than the staff. At least, the staff not working the tables," he amended.</p>
      <p>Judy bit her lip and sent a questioning look to Nick, who would be more knowledgeable about the way casinos worked and the best way to infiltrate one.</p>
      <p>Nick, his features pensive, finally answered, "I have a horrible idea." He glanced at the map before turning his attention back to Judy. "But it might work," he said as he itched at his left ear and gave his head a quick shake.</p>
      <p>"I'm not going to like this, am I?" Judy asked in the silence that followed.</p>
      <p>"You're going to hate it," Nick agreed. "But it's our only option."</p>
      <p>Judy huffed and gave a nod, motioning for Nick to proceed.</p>
      <p>"They know who we are," Nick said. "Casinos have the best security you can buy, which includes facial recognition. We go in there, they're going to find us, so if Freddy tells us the Palm is the right place, we're going to stroll in the front door."</p>
      <p>"Are you crazy?" Judy hissed.</p>
      <p>"Crazy like a fox," Nick smirked and winked causing Judy to roll her eyes before Nick's expression turned serious. "Worst case scenario, they sideline us and we get nowhere, but we might be able to have a look around and maybe find where the entrance is to get to the hidden basement. Best case scenario, they decide that we are too close, too dangerous, and take us into the basement where they are keeping the kitnapped mammals."</p>
      <p>"That's the best-case scenario!?" Freddy asked in a pitched voice.</p>
      <p>"Well, we'll have you to raise the alarm if we don't walk out of there," Nick pointed out.</p>
      <p>Freddy looked to her, his eyes pleading with her to not take this risk. "He's right," she finally acknowledged. "There isn't any other way. There isn't any time."</p>
      <p>"Okay," Freddy agreed. "I'll follow the plan, but how do I let you know if I've found the tag?" he wondered. </p>
      <p>"A signal would be less obvious than a text or phone call," Nick said.</p>
      <p>"How about I have my tote on my right side if I find the tag, left if I don't." Freddy suggested.</p>
      <p>"That works," Judy agreed.</p>
      <p>"And if I don't think the Palm is the place, I'll check out the other casino/hotels," Freddy said.</p>
      <p>"And if you don't find anything but suspect that the hotel/casino you're at is the place you saw the tag?" Nick wondered.</p>
      <p>"I'll have the tote on the right, but the flap will be open." Judy and Nick nodded at Freddy's suggestion. "After I give confirmation that I've found the right place, I'll continue on my route, but how long do I wait to call in the cavalry?"</p>
      <p>"Half an hour?" Nick suggested.</p>
      <p>"Half… Seriously?" Freddy gasped in disbelief.</p>
      <p>"Yeah," Nick answered. "We can't go in there as cops, they'll bolt, close up shop, and we'll never find Finnick. We go in as ourselves, snoop around, get them nervous, see if we can't get them to make a move."</p>
      <p>"Or they kick you out before you get two feet in the door," Freddy pointed out.</p>
      <p>"Or that," Nick agreed, "But if that happens, we'll have to come up with a different plan."</p>
      <p>"Fine, half an hour, then I'm calling the cops," Freddy agreed.</p>
      <p>"We'll get you Chief Bogo's direct line," Judy informed him.</p>
      <p>"I still really, really don't like this," Freddy murmured.</p>
      <p>"It's the best we can do," Nick soothed, placing a comforting paw on his shoulder.</p>
      <p>Judy traded an apprehensive look with Nick and swallowed roughly, a leaden lump forming in her gut as she recognized how very badly their slap-dash plan could go and how high the stakes were.</p>
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        <strong>Phew, but okay, next chappie….things happen! LOL</strong>
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<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Chapter 19</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm back!! Hope you guys enjoy this chapter!!!<br/>Thank you to everyone for the lovely comments and kuddos!!<br/>XDXDXD</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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      <p><strong>Freddy</strong> considered himself to be brave for a rabbit. After all, his species was not known for their courage, so compared to the norm, he felt that he had lived his life with more daring than most. But right now, as he rode his bike through the bustling streets of Sahara Square, he felt that he was a moment away from giving into his instincts, turning tail, and pedaling as fast as he could in the opposite direction.</p>
      <p>Unfortunately for his future longevity, he would never forgive himself if he did so. He had agreed to help, had thrown himself into the middle of Judy and Nick's investigation, and he knew that they were counting on him.</p>
      <p>Even though he thought that the plan was too risky and had a better chance of ending in possible deadly failure than success, he accepted that he had a role to play in this disaster and was determined to fulfill it.</p>
      <p>Slowing his bike as he pulled up in front of the Palm Hotel, he resisted the urge to look towards the alley where Judy and Nick were waiting for him to give them the signal for what, if anything, he had found.</p>
      <p>Hopping from his bike, he placed his tire in the rack. He opened the flap of his messenger bag and dug around for the three thick envelopes he was delivering.</p>
      <p>Striding confidently into the building, he pushed his way through the revolving door that led into the extravagantly decorated front lobby done up in rich emerald green and gold carpets, dark wood paneling, and white walls with gold accents. Glancing to his right, an ornate marble fountain depicting the figure of Eostre the rabbit of luck holding a golden coin, standing sentinel at the entrance to the casino. The reservoir was filled with coins from those hoping the goddess would smile favourably on the gamblers who entered the den of sin that was spread out behind her.</p>
      <p>Reluctantly turning his attention from his quick perusal of the interior, he noted that there was no dry-cleaning on any of the laundry racks, nor tags that would indicate that he was in the right place. Pulling his shoulders back, he turned to the left, striding towards the hotel's reception desk.</p>
      <p>There were three mammals behind the desk, a male black jaguar that gave the air of a mammal in a managerial position, a male lynx looking slightly harried by whatever it was the jaguar was discussing with him, and a female gazelle.</p>
      <p>It had been a while since he had worked this particular route and with the high rate of turnover in the service industry, he didn't recognize a single mammal behind the counter.</p>
      <p>Approaching the gazelle that was manning one of the four computers at the check-in desk, he put on his most winning smile. "Good morning," he greeted chipperly.</p>
      <p>She smiled back at him politely. "Good morning," she replied. "How may I help you today?"</p>
      <p>"I've got a delivery," he said handing her the three envelopes. "Just need you to sign here," he said, pulling out a clipboard and a pen.</p>
      <p>"Okay," she said, taking the pen and signing for the mail.</p>
      <p>"I have to say, Dottie," he began making small talk as he read her name tag, "your horns look spectacular," he complimented her.</p>
      <p>"Oh," she smiled brightly. "Thank you," she said handing him back his clipboard and pen while leaning forward. "It's a new oil I picked up that Gazelle swears by," she shared conspiratorially.</p>
      <p>He gave her a knowing smile. "I can see why," he admitted as he darted his eyes around, scanning for anything that would indicate that this was where he had seen the tag.</p>
      <p>Frustrated at not finding anything or having any sense that this was the right place, he gave a cheery goodbye to Dottie and turned to leave.</p>
      <p>"Where's Wally?" a voice asked him as he nearly slammed nose first into the very wide, very solid chest of a rhinoceros.</p>
      <p>Lifting his gaze, he noted that the rhinoceros' dark eyes were filled with anger and suspicion. Giving a friendly smile, Freddy hoped the rhinoceros wouldn't be able to hear his now rapidly beating heart crashing against his ribcage. "I switched him runs today," he answered truthfully, which caused the rhinoceros' eyes to narrow and Freddy felt a frisson of trepidation slide down his spine as he sensed the rhinoceros posed a very real danger to him.</p>
      <p>He had intended to walk out of the casino, despondent that he had been unable to trigger a memory or find any evidence that this was the place they were looking for, but now, with the rhinoceros looming over him in a threatening manner, he knew that they were in the right place. HIs mind furiously working on a plan to extricate himself, he decided to try to talk his way out of it, mostly by telling the truth.</p>
      <p>Motioning with his paw, he leaned forward as if he was going to share a secret. The rhinoceros, frowning in confusion, obligingly bent over so that their faces were only inches apart. "See, the thing is…" he paused as he shifted his focus around as if he was making sure no one else was listening before he continued, "I temped this run a while back, bouncing around from route to route until I heard Wally was looking to get out of Downtown and I jumped at the chance to take that route. I wanted to deliver to Precinct One because I wanted to ask Judy Hopps, you know, the hero of Zootopia and still only bunny cop, out on a date." He allowed himself to take a breath because he had felt he was losing his audience a bit and had to rush the explanation, though his last words appeared to have caught the rhinoceros' attention. "I asked and she agreed to go out with me," he continued as he gave a cocky grin, like he was the<em> buck</em>, irresistible to does everywhere. His grin fell from his face and twisted into a line of displeasure. "We went out on two dates and she decided that she's not interested. I mean…I was awesome! Took her out, showed her a good time, and then she just…lays the whole, 'I think we should just be friends' speech on me."</p>
      <p>Grimacing for real at how thick he was laying on his wounded male pride and his despondency at Judy's rejection, he studied his audience and recognized that he had the rhinoceros' sympathy. Just two bros talking about the vagaries of females.</p>
      <p>Now he had to sell the lie given after the truths that had been told. "Do you know how awkward it is having to deliver the mail to the place where the doe you have feelings for who only wants to be your friend is?" he asked rhetorically. "It's awful," he deadpanned. "I begged Wally to switch me for a week or two until I can find someone to take my Downtown route and Wally agreed because he's a great guy who'll do a buck a solid and he knows the route, so it worked out."</p>
      <p>The rhinoceros, recognizing that Freddy had finished his explanation, straightened and eyed him thoughtfully.</p>
      <p>Freddy adjusted his bag to his right side, leaving the flap open as he stuffed in his clipboard, the signal of 'this is the place but I didn't find the tag' on display for Nick and Judy to see, if he managed to extricate himself from the slightly sticky situation he found himself in.</p>
      <p>Trying to appear disappointed and heartbroken as opposed to angry and terrified, he gave a soft sigh, his shoulders slumping in defeat.</p>
      <p>The rhinoceros reached out and patted him on the shoulder in a comforting manner. "I feel ya," the rhinoceros said as they shared a moment of bonding over heartbreak, Freddy giving a curt nod of understanding.</p>
      <p>"Well, gotta run, or in my case, ride. I'll see you tomorrow if you're working the same shift," he said in a friendly manner, making it look like he was pulling himself back together. "What's your name?" he asked.</p>
      <p>"Gerald," the rhinoceros answered.</p>
      <p>"Nice talking with you, Gerald," he replied as he gave a wave, turned, and made his way to the revolving door, careful to keep his pace quick, but not suspiciously so.</p>
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      <p><strong>Nick</strong> glanced over at Judy, her eyes filled with deep concern.</p>
      <p>'Are you sure you're okay?' she asked him as he felt his left ear flick in irritation, the high-pitched ringing that had begun yesterday afternoon only getting louder after a fitful night's sleep.</p>
      <p>'I'm fine,' he lied as they stood, tucked out of sight, just around the corner from the Palm Hotel, waiting for the signal from Freddy that would determine their next move.</p>
      <p>Judy frowned at him, indicating that she didn't believe him but let the subject drop, intent on focusing her attention back towards the casino.</p>
      <p>Nick closed his eyes briefly, willing himself to ignore the piercing sound. Tinnitus had been one of the possible side-effects of the explosion and as much as Nick had been devastated by his hearing loss, he would rather be deaf than deal with the constant, torturous ringing.</p>
      <p>Opening his eyes, he pushed his discomfort aside; there were more important things to worry about, like finding Finnick and surviving his own insane plan.</p>
      <p>He'd managed to escape from more ludicrous situations than the one they were about to thrust themselves into, but he didn't like the odds of all of them making it out of this alive or unscathed. It was much easier going solo and only having to worry about his own skin, but he needed all the help he could get and truthfully, after learning about Judy's near-death experiences, he wanted to keep her as close to him as possible, even if perversely, it meant dragging her right into danger with him.</p>
      <p>He gave a humourless smirk at this thought, but the expression was wiped completely from his face the moment Freddy emerged from the revolving door, his bag flung over his right side, the flap open.</p>
      <p>Judy poked him in the shoulder to gain his attention. 'He didn't find anything, but this is the place,' she informed him and he threw her an irritated glance, knowing the code frontwards and backwards, having spent a great deal of time last night not sleeping as his mind tumbled end over end trying to figure out a way for this plan to not go pear-shaped as soon as they walked into the Palm Casino.</p>
      <p>Unfortunately, he had been unable to think of an ulterior plan or course of action to the one they had agreed on the previous day, one that was less risky and had a higher probability of success.</p>
      <p>Determined to do everything in his power to make sure Judy and Finnick made it out alive, he narrowed his focus and waited patiently for Freddy to finish with the deliveries he had to make on this block. As soon as Freddy was out of eyesight they would make their way into the casino and try to flush out 'the bad guy', hopefully finding and rescuing Finnick in the process.</p>
      <p>Nick gave a nod towards the casino, indicating that it was time to go. Judy slipped from the alley first and Nick followed close on her heels. Their pace was sedate and leisurely. They didn't want to give the impression of suspicious intent.</p>
      <p>Entering the hotel lobby, they ignored the hotel reception desk on their left and turned right, walking to the large center fountain that stood at the entryway of the casino. Nick dug into his pants, pulling out a coin and flicking it into the reservoir.</p>
      <p>Judy lifted an enquiring eye ridge at him and he shrugged. 'Every little bit counts,' he explained as he put his paws in his pockets and strolled into the brilliantly lit and bustling casino. Her eyes widened as she glanced around with open awe and he asked her if she had ever been inside the casino before.</p>
      <p>'No,' she answered as she continued to take in her surroundings while Nick, who had been to the casino on several occasions, realized how very difficult their task was going to be.</p>
      <p>The casino sprawled out before them covering an area of several blocks and two stories. Nick quickly recognized the impossibility of finding the entrance to the secret basement level.</p>
      <p>Judy poked him in the shoulder gaining his attention. 'What about over there?' she motioned to a set of double doors guarded by two elephant security guards in black tuxes.</p>
      <p>'That's the Players Lounge for the high rollers who bet their fortunes on the turn of a card,' Nick informed her. 'It's possible that there could be a back entrance through there, but there isn't any way we are getting past those two, even with a distraction. There are cameras and we would be spotted in no time; security would come running.'</p>
      <p>'What about the second floor?' she asked. 'The elevator could descend into a basement level,' she pointed out, her eyes scanning what she could see of the retail shops above their heads.</p>
      <p>'I've been on that elevator and it only has the main floor and the second level. You can't even access the rooms of the hotel from there,' he informed her.</p>
      <p>Taking Judy's arm in his own, he led her over to the roulette wheels. They weren't going to play, but they were located on a raised dais that would give them a better view of the East and South side of the building.</p>
      <p>Thankfully, at this time of the morning, the tables were thin of patrons and they were able to observe the layout of the casino easily. Sitting upon the rich, emerald green and gold carpet and interspersed between soaring, white marble columns were banks of slot machines taking up a good portion of the central area of the casino. The East side of the room housed the blackjack tables and the South side had the poker tables and the cashier. A buffet and restaurant area were located on the North side of the room and the West housed the craps tables.</p>
      <p>Judy tugged at her arm that was still clasped in the crook of his. Looking at her in question she gave a shake of her head. 'There are a few fire exits, the doors to the kitchens for the buffet and the restaurant, storage closets, employee only entrances which probably lead to break rooms and back hallways, which means-'</p>
      <p>'There are too many places to look,' he agreed, interrupting her thought. 'And places we can't access without attracting too much attention. We would have one shot, one guess, and that would be it.'</p>
      <p>Judy scanned the casino floor again, Nick's gaze following his partner's, knowing that her mind was razor sharp and that she had good gut instincts. 'This doesn't feel right,' she finally said to him, gaining his attention by pulling on his arm.</p>
      <p>'We haven't been accosted yet,' he agreed.</p>
      <p>'Were we wrong?' she asked, concern written on her face.</p>
      <p>He flicked his eyes around the casino, noting that there was security walking around but they weren't particularly interested in them as they stood at the roulette table watching the lone gambler, a porcupine, lose three spins in a row.</p>
      <p>Baring his teeth in a snarl, he clutched his free paw into an angry fist. If they were wrong, they were back at square one and their chances of finding Finnick, which were already low, were now even worse.</p>
      <p>'Do you think Freddy was wrong?' he asked instead of giving into his frustrated, desperate fury.</p>
      <p>'It's too important,' Judy replied. 'He wouldn't have let us come in here if he didn't think that this is where he saw the tag.'</p>
      <p>Nick let out a huff, unclenching his fingers and trying to clear his head. Judy was right, and he couldn't help but to agree with her assessment of the situation.</p>
      <p>Something wasn't right.</p>
      <p>Only the Players Lounge stood out to him as being an access point for rich mammals deciding to bet on something other than the cards they held in their paws. The casino customers may not notice mammals heading through restricted doors or areas, but too many employees would have to be in on what was really going on in the casino if patrons were walking through kitchens and service hallways without objecting to their presence.</p>
      <p>'Damn it,' he snarled.</p>
      <p>'Player's Lounge?' Judy asked.</p>
      <p>'It's the only place I can think of, but…' Nick bit his lip before making a decision.</p>
      <p>Pulling Judy along with him, he moved at a sedate pace across the room towards the Player's Lounge, where the two elephant security guards continued to stand outside of the door. 'Hey there,' Nick said with a charming smile as both mammals looked down on him from their imposing heights, their eyes obscured by dark glasses.</p>
      <p>If either of the two elephants spoke, he couldn't tell as he had encountered a severe hinderance in his ability to read the lips of a mammal with a trunk obstructing his view. Not sure if he was interrupting or not, he addressed both mammals, shifting his attention between the two. 'I'm Nick Wilde and you both probably know my partner, Judy Hopps, the hero of Zootopia.'</p>
      <p>The elephants glanced at each before studying Judy and himself. 'Anyway,' Nick continued, 'I was curious, is this the entrance for the casino's security room?'</p>
      <p>The elephant to the left of the door answered, Nick able to pick up the movement of his trunk, but nothing else.</p>
      <p>'Sorry,' Nick apologized, 'I'm completely deaf, lost my hearing when I was in a building that blew up,' he explained in a contrite tone.</p>
      <p>The elephants looked at each other before the one on the left shook his head.</p>
      <p>'Oh,' Nick said, as he felt Judy's claws digging into his arm, indicating she was wondering what he was doing. 'Sorry,' he apologized again, trying to be as pleasant and non-threatening as possible. 'I've been here before, but I've never been here this early and I've never noticed this door,' he explained. 'I know it's a pain but do either of you have a pen and paper on you?' he asked. 'It would make this easier,' he explained. 'Since the accident I've been on bed rest, so this has been my first chance to get out. I convinced Judy to bring me here, hoping for a little fun, even though it's a little short of company at the moment, I thought it would be better to avoid the crowds, broken ribs aren't much fun and being jostled would be painful. Anyway, like I said, I was just curious as to what is behind this door? Anything interesting?'</p>
      <p>The two security guards turned their attention to Judy who gave a shrug and said something Nick was unable to make out. The elephant on the right walked over to a podium and pulled out a clipboard and pen from somewhere within and quickly wrote something down on a piece of paper. The elephant handed it to him, and Nick took a moment to quickly read what the elephant had written on the blank sheet of paper while surreptitiously lifting the corner of the page wanting to see what appeared to be a list beneath.</p>
      <p>Already knowing the answer to his question, he knew he needed…</p>
      <p>'Is that Gazelle?' he asked, suddenly, his head swiveling around to follow a set of gazelle horns that he had caught just out of the corner of his eye.</p>
      <p>…the perfect distraction.</p>
      <p>The attention of the elephants shifted in the direction he indicated, and he quickly lifted the sheet, having a look at the list of twelve of Zootopia society's crème del la crème.</p>
      <p>The gazelle strode into view and though beautiful, was not<em> the</em> Gazelle.</p>
      <p>'Guess it wasn't her,' he said with a sad shake of his head, handing back the clipboard. 'Say, is there a game going on right now?' he questioned.</p>
      <p>The elephant wrote: <strong>No. Cleaning staff are inside.</strong></p>
      <p>He nodded. It would be ridiculous to guard an empty room. But a room that is occupied by cleaners made more sense. 'Can I get a peek inside?' Nick asked, handing back the clipboard. 'Just a quick peek, I won't even go inside. I'm just curious how the other half plays poker,' he said with a wink and a polite smile.</p>
      <p>The elephants both shared a look, possibly debated with each other, before they gave a shrug and opened the door. Taking a look around and true to his word of only observing what he could from the door, his gaze took in the large poker table that sat in the center of the room, the private bar at the far end and a private bathroom at the other, where he was able to make out the tail of a beaver, who had to be part of the cleaning staff the elephant had told them about.</p>
      <p>The room had no other doors or exits. Nick pulled himself away from the door, disappointed and frustrated. Thanks, you guys. Wow! Must be nice to have money. How much is the buy in?' he questioned, still trying to be pleasant and not suspicious.</p>
      <p>The elephant wrote down a number that was more than he made in a year and he gave a low whistle. 'Gentlemammals, thank you,' he said as he gave a quick salute and tucked Judy's paw back into the crook of his arm.</p>
      <p>He remained silent as he headed back towards the entrance. Striding past the huge fountain, Nick tried to control his temper and ignore the desolate, hopeless feeling that was sitting in his stomach like a chunk of lead.</p>
      <p>They had one shot -one- and they failed.</p>
      <p>The only lead he still had left was the list from the Player's room and he knew they didn't have any evidence or reason to bring any of the mammals on that list into the station. Being rich was not a crime.</p>
      <p>He strode through the lobby, his thoughts in turmoil because he didn't know what to do next. They walked through the revolving door of the Palm and Nick exercised his extreme will to not break down right there on the sidewalk. Instead, he ignored Judy pulling on his arm, attempting to get him to slow down or stop, heading towards the rendezvous point where they would meet up with Freddy.</p>
      <p>Rounding the corner, he saw the buck standing partially hidden in the alley with his bike, a relieved, unsure, but hopeful expression on his face, and Nick felt his knees buckle.</p>
      <p>Striking the asphalt, he found himself bowing forward as if in pain, but even though his ribs screamed the abuse, it only registered as a dull ache in comparison to his heart, which was breaking.</p>
      <p>He had been so sure that they had reached the right conclusion, determined the right location, but they had been wrong. They had found no evidence of any nefarious criminal operation. He and Judy hadn't been approached by anyone and security hadn't paid any attention to them.</p>
      <p>Tiny fingers dug into his upper arms, punishing enough that he had no choice but to finally face his partner.</p>
      <p>'Nick! You need to calm down!' Judy said to him, enunciating her words so that he would have no problem reading her lips.</p>
      <p>'How am I supposed to calm down?!' he snarled. 'We failed!' he bit out angrily. 'We had one shot to save Finnick or at least find out where he is and we…we didn't find anything!'</p>
      <p>He slowly stood, shaking Judy's paws off his arms. He needed a moment, and thankfully, she gave it to him. Pacing back and forth in agitation, his mind was nothing but black roiling chaos. He was unable to even gather a single thought, too many crowded twisting threads were writhing together to make sense of anything, but it didn't matter, because they had hit a dead end.</p>
      <p>Judy's paws latched onto his upper arms again and he looked into her brilliant violet eyes. 'We have something,' she said to him and he stared at her in disbelief.</p>
      <p>'What?' he asked incredulously.</p>
      <p>'Freddy says that he was accosted when he was in the lobby of the hotel, but we weren't when we were in the casino,' Judy explained. 'They had to know we were surveilling the place, but no one approached us or seemed concerned with our presence.'</p>
      <p>'We thought the casino was where everything was happening because it made the most sense,' Freddy said to him. 'There are so many mammals and things going on, and if they are kidnapping mammals for mammal fighting rings and betting on them, what better location than the casino? But what if it's happening in the hotel?'</p>
      <p>'The dry-cleaning tags would make more sense,' Judy added with a nod.</p>
      <p>'The hotel would have conference rooms, stairwells, and service elevators,' Nick acknowledged, hope blooming within him at the thought that they still had a chance to find and rescue Finnick.</p>
      <p>Freddy took off his helmet and placed it on his handlebars, slinging his satchel over the seat and shoving his bike behind a dumpster. Frowning in confusion, Nick never got the chance to ask Freddy what he was doing before the buck explained. 'I'll go,' Freddy stated as he gave Judy and Nick a smile. 'It was going to be our first plan anyway, so we'll just go with that.'</p>
      <p>'Freddy, no,' Judy protested as Nick stared at the buck in shock.</p>
      <p>'I know the layout and I can slip in unnoticed, you two can't. Give me half-an-hour. And don't worry, I'll be careful,' he promised as he darted down the alley, heading towards the back of the casino.</p>
      <p>Too shocked to react to the buck's sudden decision, Nick knew he would never be able to catch the rabbit. Judy acted more swiftly than he had, taking after the buck at a sprint only to slide to a halt at the end of the alley, unable to catch up to the rabbit and apparently not wishing to draw attention to Freddy's actions.</p>
      <p>Running back to Nick, Judy shook her head in dismay. 'We can't let him do this.'</p>
      <p>'We kinda already did,' Nick pointed out, fisting his paws in irritation as he stared at the empty entrance to the alley, knowing that the buck was right. Having Freddy infiltrate the Palm by slipping in through the kitchen had been their first plan to get into the hotel, but Nick had an uneasy feeling about letting the rabbit go in alone now that they knew they had the right location.</p>
      <p><em>Stupid bunny</em>, he thought to himself, gashing his teeth. It didn't matter that the buck was right, the problem was that he was probably going to get himself killed…or worse. He looked to Judy. They had no plan for extracting the buck. The main floor of the hotel was massive and he had no idea where he would end up or be taken if he was caught.</p>
      <p>Nick closed his eyes, the adrenalin that had been pulsing through his veins fading; the dull ringing in his ear that he had successfully been ignoring until now intensifying. A gentle paw was placed on his arm and he found himself suddenly on his knees, the feeling of a nail being driven through his left ear causing him to cry out in pain.</p>
      <p>Judy knelt in front of him, her paws gripping his shoulders tightly, as he grabbed his afflicted ear.</p>
      <p>Claws, sharp and piercing, tore into his arms as Judy's paws were suddenly ripped away. Opening his eyes in fearful confusion, Nick caught a glimpse of Judy being forcefully dragged away by a coyote.</p>
      <p>Judy was able to call out his name in distress before a black bag was shoved over her head, her body going limp in the coyote's hold.</p>
      <p>This horrifying sight was obscured as a thick, black, cotton bag that smelled vaguely of cigarettes and greasy food was dragged over his own head. He struggled against the attack, his arms quickly pinned to his side, pain blossoming in his arm as his already blackened world quickly faded from his consciousness.</p>
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        <strong>Cliffie! Because yeah... I'm evil...</strong>
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        <strong>A/N Eostre is an Anglo-Saxton goddess of the spring, resurrection, the dawn, the moon, fertility, and a bunch of other stuff. She is associated with eggs and rabbits and is said to take the form of a rabbit, and as I was trying to look for a mammal that was considered 'lucky' I ended up on a rabbit because of the whole 'lucky rabbit's foot' thing. And because Eostre is associated with rabbits and can turn into one, I used her name and made her the rabbit goddess of luck in the Zootopia world.</strong>
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